Omaha’s “Shine a Light on Hunger“ Campaign Returns as Food Insecurity Rises
OMAHA, NE – As the need for food assistance grows in the heartland, the Food Bank for the Heartland’s annual “Shine a Light on hunger” campaign is launching for its 19th year, aiming to provide critical support to individuals and families facing food insecurity. The campaign arrives at a time when demand is substantially outpacing available resources, and a recent government shutdown has further complicated matters for vulnerable Nebraskans.
According to Brian Barks, President and CEO of Food Bank for the Heartland, approximately 260,000 people within their service area currently lack consistent access to enough food to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Barks noted a concerning trend: the number of food-insecure individuals has been steadily increasing over the past five years.
“We’re seeing a real surge in need,” Barks explained. “Through the first three months of our fiscal year – July, August, and September – the amount of assistance requested was up 6.5%. Simultaneously, the amount of food we had available to distribute decreased by 11%.”
This disparity is forcing tough choices on families. Barks described heartbreaking scenarios, stating, “Sometimes people will make other decisions [such as] ‘I’m going to feed my child, but I’m not going to eat tonight,’ or ‘I’m going to skip lunch and dinner tonight.’ These are the daily realities for about 260,000 people in our service area.”
The recent federal government shutdown has only exacerbated the situation. Over 155,000 Nebraskans temporarily lost their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, forcing them to make even more agonizing trade-offs between essential needs like food, rent, medication, and loan payments. While it’s still early to fully assess the shutdown’s impact, Barks emphasized that it’s compounding existing hardships.
“The shutdown means people are sacrificing even more to put food on the table,” he said. “It makes those already difficult decisions even more unachievable.”
“Shine a Light on Hunger” aims to address this growing crisis by rallying community support. The Food Bank for the Heartland is urging residents to contribute through donations of food and funds to help ensure that no one in the region goes hungry. The campaign underscores the urgent need to support neighbors facing unprecedented challenges in accessing a basic necessity.
