Behind Every Fridge: Food Insecurity, Struggle and Survival

When I opened the fridge as a kid, it wasn’t just food staring back at me. Carefully calculated survival was stacked on every shelf. Containers of leftovers “saved” for as long as possible; many kept long past the time they’d be safe to eat. Beans that had been rationed down to the final scoop and blocks of cheese trimmed and re-trimmed until nothing but hardened corners remained. The fridge light cast a spotlight on meals stretched beyond safe-to-consume dates, a stage where my mom played magician, turning scraps into dinner.

She could make a single box of macaroni stretch three nights, serving it with a smile that hid the math behind it. We ate food that no longer seemed safe because hunger felt worse than risking an upset stomach. Meanwhile, my grandpa, sick through the night, still buttoned his work shirt in the morning. Survival wasn’t a lack of effort or planning, it was an exhausting equation that demanded creativity, grit and faith that somehow, it would all work out.

That’s the reality for millions of families today, especially those now facing growing uncertainty around food assistance programs. When programs like SNAP and WIC are caught in political crossfire, it’s not policies that go hungry – it’s people. It’s parents doing everything they can — working multiple jobs, budgeting down to the penny, cutting coupons, skipping their own meals to feed their kids – who find themselves punished by systems that fail to see their humanity. Cuts to SNAP, including recent changes to SNAP requirements, not only strain already tight household budgets but rip holes in safety nets that were never designed to weather storms like this.

Yet, through this hardship, damaging and deeply false narratives persist. There’s talk that families struggling in moments like this are simply “irresponsible,” that if they just “bought smarter” or “ate healthier,” they wouldn’t be in crisis mode. It’s a cruel and false story, one that ignores reality and erases dignity.

The truth is that SNAP and WIC participants are among the most resourceful people in our communities. They know the price of milk in every store within a five-mile radius. They know which foods can last a week and which sales align with paydays. They make lists, plan meals and stretch budgets in ways that most people couldn’t imagine — because they have to.

In Jefferson County, 1 in 10 people — and 1 in 8 children — experience food insecurity, unsure if they’ll eat tomorrow. These are not statistics about “other people.” These are our neighbors, coworkers, child-care providers and service workers. They are the people who keep our communities running, often while navigating impossible financial choices of their own, such as where to spend limited financial resources — on groceries, gas or rent. When they are looked on with judgment instead of compassion, we deepen harm. Poverty isn’t an individual’s moral failing; it’s a social failure – one that we all have the power to address.

That’s why now, more than ever, empathy needs to be our response. Instead of asking “Why don’t they budget?” we should be asking “Why aren’t our systems stronger?” Instead of shaming families for needing help, we should be demanding policies that ensure no family goes hungry when government systems falter or fall behind.

Although the hard truth is that compassion alone isn’t enough, it’s where change can begin. We need leaders to prioritize policies that allow everyone to thrive. Until policies are in place to provide a living wage and ensure everyone has access to the health care they need, we need stable funding for food assistance programs like SNAP and WIC. We need to support food banks and other community organizations that are stretched to their limit trying to fill the gaps left by a system that leaves people behind. And we absolutely need everyday people, all of us, to show up for one another.

You have a voice: Use it to advocate for programs that protect our most vulnerable. If you have the means, donate to your local food pantry. And if you’ve never faced hunger, remember that most families who do once thought they never would.

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