Skyler Baldwin | It took the Coastal Community Foundation (CCF) just one day to get more than $330,000 in pledges for much-needed help for hungry Lowcountry families.
On Nov. 4, the charity activated its Care Fund for the first time since the pandemic to offer emergency grant funding to organizations that serve families in need of food assistance during the federal shutdown. It had a $500,000 goal for donations. After a day of remarkable generosity, it needs $170,000 to meet the goal to help support efforts of the Lowcountry Food Bank and its partners.
“So many hardworking families are just one paycheck away from needing the support of a food bank,” Lowcountry Food Bank CEO Nick Osborne said at a Nov. 5 press conference. “Thanks to our network of 240 partner agencies and food pantries, we are, however, able to meet the needs where they are.”
Over the last year, he said, the need for food assistance has risen by 30%. In 2024, the food bank supported more than 200,000 residents, distributing more than 46 million pounds of food, the equivalent of 33 million meals. In October, however, walk-ins at the food pantry have tripled, and web page traffic has more than doubled.
To meet the current demand due to the loss of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, the Lowcountry Food Bank must add at least $125,000 in food assistance every week, the foundation said in a press release.
“We’re living through unprecedented moments in time in our nation’s history, amid the highest food insecurity rates in a decade,” Osborne said. “With the federal shutdown, this is only deepening the hardships of tens of thousands of federal employees, active duty military personnel and federal contractors right here in South Carolina.”
Other partner organizations came together to support the ongoing efforts of the food bank. Other organizations present include Trident United Way and Palmetto Goodwill.
“If you are experiencing financial strain, if you are choosing between food and bills or gas in your car or an unexpected expense, or if you don’t know how you’re going to get through this next week, you are not alone,” said D.J. Hampton II, president and CEO of Trident United Way.
Despite the partnership driving massive donations and support to local nonprofits, leaders say that it’s not the final solution.
“We don’t know how much longer this government shutdown will last, but we do know that the partners we see here are doing all we can do to help,” said Darrin Goss, Sr., the foundation’s president and CEO. “But philanthropy is not a sustainable solution.
“I urge you to contact your elected officials at the federal level to … prioritize our people in our communities, to get federal workers the paychecks that they deserve, to feed the families in need.”
- You can help here: coastal.fcsuite.com/erp/donate. All donations go directly toward recipients of the grant funding, as CCF and the Lowcountry Food Bank collect no fees from the fund.
- If you need help: Visit the Lowcountry Food Bank website to find the nearest pantry to you.
Other efforts underway in West Ashley
The Lowcountry Food Bank isn’t the only agency distributing more food than ever to people in need. In response to the pause in federal benefits, West Ashley Connects started a food supply drive with three Charleston businesses volunteering to collect donated items, including:
- Highfalutin Coffee Roasters, 27 Magnolia Road;
- Frothy Beard Brewing Company, 1401 Sam Rittenberg Blvd.;
- Cafe Roca, 1299 Ashley River Road.
Volunteers will retrieve donations and use them to stock Blessing Boxes around West Ashley.
“I’m not an elected official, and I can’t get the government to re-open, but our nonprofit can help provide relief,” said West Ashley Connects co-founder Kenneth Marolda. “As the saying goes, ‘A civilization is measured by how it treats its weakest members.’”
Marolda said there are several local business owners who feel a sense of responsibility to lend a helping hand when possible. For example, he said Michael Biondi at Frothy Beard has been a partner with West Ashley Connects for several years, hosting supply drives for the 2022 and 2025 fires at The Palms apartments. Adam Hunt at Highfalutin Coffee has been a consistent supporter for neighborhood events for several years. And Shannon Wakefield, who recently opened Cafe Roca, has helped organize many food supply drives in the past.
“These folks decided that in this time of need, they wanted their businesses to lend a hand in providing relief by hosting collection boxes,” Marolda said. “Our nonprofit can collect funds and buy supplies, but partnerships with local businesses are the foundations of programs like this.”
How to help: Marolda said those who want to donate should prioritize canned goods (preferably with pop-up lids), beans, vegetables, boxed rice and pasta and jarred sauces. Soups are particularly helpful, he said, because they often don’t require any additional ingredients to prepare.
Non-food items like powdered baby formula, baby wipes, small bottles of dish soap and small packages of diapers are also welcome.
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