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There is grim desperation in the voice of an otherwise unflappable Joanne Shope, volunteer coordinator at Christmas Cheer, the South Lake Tahoe food pantry. The organization, which provides food to those in need year-round, has been crushed with people, families mostly, following layoffs and closures throughout Lake Tahoe’s south shore.
The need has jumped 157 percent in one month, Shope said. There were 1,733 food requests in November at Christmas Cheer. The average is about 1,100.
Families are in need of food and there’s next to nothing left to give them, she said.
“We got hit so hard. It’s never been this bad. And we’re only in day three of December. We’ve run out of practically everything,” Shope said. “We have no spaghetti, no macaroni and cheese, no vegetables, we have pancake mix but no syrup and no meat.”
There is such an urgency for food that pantry officials say are they are unsure how they’ll be able to handle their annual Christmas family food basket program because the needs now are immediate.
As South Lake Tahoe continues to spiral as the nation does in this recession, the need is all around and it crosses all ethnic lines. For every store closed and pink slip given, there’s less money to go around.
“People are talking about being laid off. They’re not sure where their next meal is going to come from,” she said.
The food pantry, located at 2085 Eloise Ave., needs food and cash donations immediately. Its Christmas toy program is also seeing a wane in new toys.
Donations can be dropped off at the pantry from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Checks can be sent to Christmas Cheer, PO Box 649, South Lake Tahoe, Calif. 96156.
The need has jumped 157 percent in one month, Shope said. There were 1,733 food requests in November at Christmas Cheer. The average is about 1,100.
Families are in need of food and there’s next to nothing left to give them, she said.
“We got hit so hard. It’s never been this bad. And we’re only in day three of December. We’ve run out of practically everything,” Shope said. “We have no spaghetti, no macaroni and cheese, no vegetables, we have pancake mix but no syrup and no meat.”
There is such an urgency for food that pantry officials say are they are unsure how they’ll be able to handle their annual Christmas family food basket program because the needs now are immediate.
As South Lake Tahoe continues to spiral as the nation does in this recession, the need is all around and it crosses all ethnic lines. For every store closed and pink slip given, there’s less money to go around.
“People are talking about being laid off. They’re not sure where their next meal is going to come from,” she said.
The food pantry, located at 2085 Eloise Ave., needs food and cash donations immediately. Its Christmas toy program is also seeing a wane in new toys.
Donations can be dropped off at the pantry from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Thursday. Checks can be sent to Christmas Cheer, PO Box 649, South Lake Tahoe, Calif. 96156.
