(NewsNation) — With SNAP benefits jeopardized at the beginning of November due to the ongoing government shutdown, one Portland, Oregon, coffee shop has stepped up in a big way to help community members in need.
Heretic Coffee Co. created the “SNAP Breakfast” program to provide free meals to people affected by uncertainty over SNAP funding — no questions asked.
Since announcing the program, the store has raised more than $350,000 and provided over 1,000 people with free meals.
Owner Josh White told NewsNation the outpouring of support demonstrates that “people will feed one another when their hungry.”
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SNAP provides roughly 42 million Americans with grocery assistance, but as the government shutdown extended into late October, it became unclear how these benefits would be funded through November.
White said Heretic began offering free meals five days before Nov. 1, after a child entered the store asking about the free meals the store advertised on social media.
“In that moment, we all felt this anger or rage that a child that night may have gone to bed hungry. And so, we immediately just said, ‘It’s open, if you’re hungry, we don’t care if it’s November 1st or right now, just come get food.'”
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Oregon was among the states that issued SNAP benefits on Friday.
Still, White explained that “we don’t know what December’s going to look like, and so as of right now we’re going to keep it in place.”
SNAP benefits are designed to supplement the amount of money recipients spend on food, with beneficiaries still expected to contribute approximately 30% of their own net income.
“It’s going to be here until we don’t need it,” White said of the program.
