st. paul

Struggling with falling donations and rising demand in a fragile economy, Twin Cities area food shelves will get a $550,000 boost next month from the United Way and two Twin Cities foundations.

"The poor can't afford to donate to food shelves and the rich just don't," said John Kemp, executive director of Neighbors Inc. in South St. Paul, which saw a 34 percent jump in demand for food in September and October over last year.

"We depend on the middle class, but in this economy many of them are strapped," said Kemp, whose program will get $16,000 to buy food, freezers and coolers.

The emergency grants, announced Thursday, will come from the Greater Twin Cities United Way, Minneapolis Foundation and F. R. Bigelow Foundation and will go to 21 programs that operate 40 emergency food shelves. That will supplement $2.1 million from the United Way this year.

In the first half of this year, visits to those food shelves rose 14 percent from last year while donations fell 3 percent.

 "People who gave us food last year are coming back for help," Kemp said. One couple who were donors in the past sought assistance this year after the husband was laid off and his wife's pay was cut in half at Sun Country Airlines.

The United Way has been monitoring the growing gap between food-shelf demand and supply and decided recently to make emergency grants to help, said Marcia Fink, director of basic needs.

'Less food per person'

"When visits are up but pounds distributed are down, that means there's less food per person," she said.

Food shelves buy food from Second Harvest and other sources to supplement donations. "Our grants should help, but they won't fill the gap," Fink said.

The United Way is putting up $300,000 and the Minneapolis Foundation $100,000. The Bigelow Foundation, which is associated with the St. Paul Foundation, is giving $150,000.

"Our program officers are seeing the impact of the current economic crisis -- people losing jobs, having trouble paying bills and food-shelf use up dramatically," John Couchman, an executive with the Bigelow and St. Paul foundations. "It was easy to decide to help."

Lots of competition

Donations may rise around holidays, Kemp said, although "many of us will be competing with other good causes" for year-end gifts.

"We're pulling every lever we can think of to increase donations," he said. "But until the economy improves, it will be a struggle to help people who need it most."

To find a nearby food shelf or to donate time or money, call Hunger Solutions Minnesota at 651-486-9860 or go to www.hungersolutions.org.

Warren Wolfe • 612-673-7253