As shutdown continues, federal workers in Atlanta look to charitable aid

Current and former federal workers demonstrate at the Centers for Illness Control and Prevention in February As a federal shutdown endures through October and toward November a great number of federal workers turn to aid from charity to make ends meet Credit Sofi Gratas GPB News Furloughed federal workers in Georgia are entering the fifth week of the governing body shutdown Without a paycheck multiple are turning to aid from charitable organizations to make ends meet At a church in Stockbridge south of Atlanta the night of Oct cars lined up waiting for a hot meal Inside were couples singles and families The food drive organized by the Henry County NAACP was for Atlanta s federal workers Thousands of employees who work in airport shield at national parks for the judicial system and in general vitality at the Centers for Disorder Control and Prevention have been furloughed Hosting the food drive to help was a collective effort mentioned Henry County NAACP president Candace Walker Mayor Vincent of McDonough she gave collard greens Walker announced And Mayor Ford of Stockbridge he gave canned goods for the grocery bags Assistants included several historically Black sororities the pastor of Mount Olive Church in Stockbridge and local business owners Out in the parking lot after receiving her plate of chicken and classic Southern sides Karen Smith revealed she s disappointed the shutdown has gone on this long Smith who did not want to name her employer disclosed this isn t her first shutdown but she called it the worst so far because she feels lawmakers are unwilling to collaborate Whereas in previous they ve come together they sat at the table they burn the midnight oil Smith disclosed At least you know they were working on it Smith hopes Congress can reach a deal before she has to take part-time work to make ends meet Do you remember Challenge of Thrones where Winter is coming Smith noted So for me November is coming If Congress cannot agree on a spending bill November also marks a pause on new SNAP benefits for over a million Georgians The Georgia Department of Human Services which oversees the operation declared in a announcement Friday that SNAP beneficiaries can continue buying food with their EBT cards until Nov but after that they won t receive their monthly benefits as expected Preparing for need in other parts of the state Across Georgia s food banks pressure is mounting and preparations are underway for a spike in demand Julie Bryant Kuykendall of Feeding Georgia the advocacy arm for the state s big seven member food banks mentioned supply is stable for now As we weather this current problem and work to make sure our neighbors have enough food on the table we re going to need that full area encouragement she mentioned We ve been asking donors for more assistance to purchase food to fill in the gaps in supply Monetary donations can go further than donations of canned food Food banks have missed out on thousands of dollars this year because of budget and staffing cuts to programs under the U S Department of Agriculture Food purchased by the USDA represents about a quarter of Feeding Georgia s food bank stock Elsewhere Transportation Guard Administration workers at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport have been promised vouchers from to cover meals and parking Also federal employees in Georgia who apply for unemployment insurance will have to pay benefits back once they start getting paid again according to the Georgia Department of Labor which is offering various training and job assistance assistance too At the Oct food drive another federal employee and society fitness worker who requested to remain anonymous estimated she has about a month s worth of living expenses left in her savings account I take care of my -year-old mother and I am about to start DoorDash next week to supplement my income she mentioned This is the U S and this shouldn t be happening and that s just my take on it The post As shutdown continues federal workers in Atlanta look to charitable aid appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta