In conjunction with the Second Harvest Food Bank , Greene County is planning a Mass Food Distribution event this Wednesday for those affected by the government shutdown as it pertains to SNAP recipients.
Due to the reduction of SNAP benefits, the Second Harvest Food Bank contacted local authorities to organize and execute the event, which will be held Wednesday at the Greene County Fairgrounds in the back parking lot area near the Salisbury Arena.
Entry will be made at Exit 5 and those recipients will exit at Gate 4.
The hours were originally set for 3-7 pm but a Second Harvest release says the event locally will be from 4-6 pm. Those hours, both beginning and ending, are flexible and will be based on traffic and available food. Plans at this time are to begin vetting recipients at 3:00 pm.
The mayor indicated local Law enforcement, community leaders, and volunteers will be on site to facilitate traffic management, safety, and loading food into vehicles.
Verified SNAP recipients will receive 4 boxes of food or approximately 40-50 pounds of protein, produce, dairy, and dry boxes.
This event is for Greene County SNAP eligible residents only while available food remains. Those desiring this assistance will need to have their SNAP card and be able to present proof of Greene County residency, Driver’s license, light bill, etc. ONLY eligible SNAP/Greene County residents will receive food boxes.
There are 7,166 SNAP recipients in Greene County that receive the equivalent of $1.4 million in benefits per month. Greene County has 15% of its population with some level of food insecurity issues that require assistance through Federal programs such as SNAP. To help offset or assist those most in need, Greene County in partnership with our established County Food Pantries primarily receives food support from Second Harvest Food Bank in Kingsport. Greene County contributes $28k annually to Second Harvest as a non-profit contribution and receives more than 2X our contribution in return. Second Harvest Food Bank is one of 5 across the State of TN set up to address regional food need issues and is supported by private and public contributions including the State of TN.
Local officials and assisting agencies were having a detailed coordination meeting this morning. The release from the office of the mayor said “Second Harvest was holding out hope that the shutdown might be resolved in time for recipients to receive regular distributed benefits, but this is not to be.”
