Prolonged increased demand for food and housing assistance have forced some area agencies into the red.
Since 2008, Iron Gate has seen a 45 percent increase in the number of people seeking assistance and the nonprofit's yearly expenses have increased from $277,367 to $833,472.
Keeping up with the increase has forced the agency to have a deficit for the first time, said Connie Cronley, executive director of the soup kitchen.
"It seems to be a perfect storm," Cronley said. "Low income, unemployed and working poor people are struggling to pay their bills and put food on their tables. More and more Tulsans need food assistance. Food costs keep climbing. Donors are being deluged with requests for funding assistance, exacerbated by government assistance cuts. We social service agencies are caught in the middle, standing on a smaller and smaller piece of dry land and calling out 'Help!' "
Cronley added that it's easier to stretch food in the soup kitchen than it is to keep its pantry filled with food for the emergency grocery bags it distributes weekly.
"Most of these bags go to families with children. We especially want to get food to kids. We make sure that every child gets one of our kid's packs of kid-friendly, healthy snacks of fruit cups, juice boxes, cheese and crackers, etc," she said.
The number of kid's packs has increased from 2,500 in 2009 to 6,500 in 2011.
"The people who come to Iron Gate have a lot of life problems - employment, health, transportation, financial. As one of our guests told us, 'It's hard to solve other problems if you're hungry,' " she said. "I never want to hang a sign on the Iron Gate door that says, 'Out of food. Try again tomorrow.' We will keep scrambling to feed people."
Tony Jezek, Iron Gate board of directors chairman, said that to make up the difference, the board will need to educate its fundraising sources and the agency will have to look at different ways to meet its needs where it can.
He added that local foundations are beginning to focus more on local organizations where the money goes directly to the bottom line.
The Salvation Army's Center of Hope has seen a 54 percent increase in the number of meals it has served in the last six years and a 38 percent increase in the number of people staying overnight.
The largest increases during this period - 22 percent and 21 percent, respectively - happened from 2007 to 2008, and 2008 to 2009. The numbers have stayed basically the same since, with small increases, prompting the agency to refer to the higher base level of demand as "the new norm."
"Usually when the economy drops, the numbers go up and as the economy gets better the numbers go down, but the numbers didn't go down," said Maj. Roy Williams, commander of The Tulsa Area Salvation Army.
The Center of Hope also ended up in the red meeting the needs of its clients.
"It's hit us pretty hard," Williams said. "The board doesn't like that we do that but we didn't turn anyone away. Does it make good business sense, no. But it's what the community needs."
Williams said he's not going to set a cap at, say 800 people, and tell 200 people to go look elsewhere.
"This is basic stuff they need. We'll go into the hole. We'll go to our sponsors and say we're needing more help. That's been the cry for every agency out there," he said.
Eileen Bradshaw, executive director of the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma, said that because of the "new norm," agencies have to now account for the dramatic increase in funding each year during the budgeting process.
"Nobody can rest and say 'We think the need has peaked,' " she said. "Agencies are trying to project those 20 percent increases into their budgets and I think that's true with all our partner programs."
While the food bank has avoided going into the red, it has struggled to keep its shelves stocked. And at the same time need is increasing, federal assistance is decreasing.
The federal commodities program, which provides free food to several agencies, has decreased 49 percent year to date, Bradshaw said.
"That's staggering. That's a lot of food," she said. "What's happening is for the food bank to meet the needs, we're purchasing a lot more food than in past years."
Last year, the food bank purchased 648,000 pounds of food. This year, it has purchased more than 1.5 million pounds.
According to the USDA, the overall Consumer Price Index for food is expected to increase by 2.5 percent to 3.5 percent in 2012.
"It's scary. We're all feeling it at home. Gas prices go up and then groceries go up," Bradshaw said. "As I go through the invoices, freight is jumping. It's becoming a huge consideration."
Iron Gate gets the majority of its food from the food bank; however, the agency is leaning more on other support agencies and churches that collect food.
"We want to serve healthy, nutritious food, but just like a family at home, sometimes we have to stretch what we have," Cronley said.
Williams said The Salvation Army has had to make staff cuts, noting that the staff was larger before the large increases in demand.
"Like everyone else, you cut back where you can without stopping the services," he said.
It has also had to juggle what it can, mixing what food it can get from the food bank with what it purchases from distributors.
"The new norm is scary because you have to keep up with that level of fundraising," Williams said.
Iron Gate
Meals served
| 2008 |
146,000 |
| 2009 |
151,438 |
| 2010 |
201,000 |
| 2011 |
220,000 |
Grocery bags distributed
| 2008 |
10,400 |
| 2009 |
10,704 |
| 2010 |
18,801 |
| 2011 |
25,658 |
Salvation Army
Meals served
| 2008 |
250,990 |
| 2009 |
305,905 |
| 2010 |
297,316 |
| 2011 |
307,596 |
Total nights lodging
| 2008 |
78,889 |
| 2009 |
95,167 |
| 2010 |
100,847 |
| 2011 |
97,701 |
(
Note: The percentage increases for The Salvation Army listed in the story reflect back to 2006)
Mike Averill 918-581-8489
mike.averill@tulsaworld.com
Original Print Headline: Helpers need help
Local
Her biological father from Oklahoma and her adoptive parents from South Carolina spent several hours Monday and Tuesday on the sixth floor of the state's Kerr office building, where the Court of Civil Appeals meets in Tulsa.
A cause of the fire is under investigation.
