According to a recent Giving USA report, charitable giving has dropped for the fourth time in 40 years, leaving food pantries with fewer donations.

Christine Hein, the People’s Place executive director, says she has seen how inflation has taken a toll on people’s lives and their ability to access basic needs.

“The cost of food has gone up so much, along with the cost of utilities and just daily life rents, that folks are really having a hard time making ends meet, so many people who [didn’t use] a food pantry before are coming and utilizing services such as ours,” said Hein.

Giving USA reports donor sentiment is down with one in four donors planning to give less this year. Hein says the impact is felt all around.

“I think that that is because the cost of food is so much more expensive that even when people used to donate for food drives, they may still donate, [but] they're going to donate maybe half as much as they used to donate,” Hein said. “We definitely have days where we do not have as much choice in variety as we really would like.”

That’s why she is focusing on the pantry’s efforts to give people a variety of produce full of nutrients.

“The better food you eat, the healthier you are, the better the whole community is. And it's struggling to fill the bins with healthy fresh produce. And we hope that as the growing season goes on, we'll have more options,” said Hein.

Hein says they provide for about 70 households daily; that equates to around 300 to 400 people a day, and just within the last month, she has seen even more of a demand.

“So, we have seen a very big spike in usage have been gradually increasing, but especially within the last month or two, and that is because the snap benefits have been reduced. And that has made gigantic impacts on food pantries in our area,” said Hein.

Hein says she is grateful for all the donations she receives and hopes the organization receives more in the upcoming harvest season.

“There's folks out there that have gardens; you can always donate, not just to People’s Place,” Hein said. “We live here in Ulster County, but [you can give] to any food pantry in your local area. They always appreciate fresh grown produce of folks who have their own gardens; many places will take that when folks come here.”

According to the Giving USA report, 64% of donations in 2022 came from individual donors, and 21% came from foundations.