Latest news with #Postel
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Mecklenburg County nonprofit says immigration fears are deterring Latino community from seeking food donations
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — A local organization that fights hunger says they're fighting fears among the Latino community. Nourish Up says they're seeing fewer families come in because of immigration concerns. Each carload for home deliveries holds a week's worth of groceries for each client. 'If somebody is hungry, we're going to feed that person,' said Tina Postel, Nourish Up CEO. 'A lot of times they'll say I have no food in my house, there's nothing in my refrigerator,' said John Patrick, a volunteer. But not everyone is showing up to get food. 'It's definitely something that keeps me up at night,' said Postel. Postel says there's one group in particular that's not coming into the dozens of pantries the organization runs in Mecklenburg County. 'If you are too afraid to go to school or go to your job, you also don't want to be visiting a grocery store,' said Postel. She says they've seen a drop of three percent in the number of Latino families getting food at Nourish Up so far this year compared with last. 'That tells me there's a lot of fear among the Latino community,' said Postel. Nourish Up had a plan to help people who were afraid to come and get food, so they set the wheels in motion to do just that, but there's an issue. 'We can leave groceries for you in a contactless delivery at your doorstep,' said Postel. But she says they don't have enough volunteers to get the food out for home deliveries. 'Sometimes they're waiting days longer than they would need to if we had more volunteers,' said Postel. John Patrick has been helping for years. 'I'm not blessing anyone the way I see it. I'm the one being blessed,' said Patrick. He hopes others will see the need and step up to feed as many as they can. 'Citizenship is not a question that we ask. We believe that food is a basic human right here at Nourish Up,' said Postel. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
USDA program cuts deepening Charlotte food insecurity, food banks say
The United States Department of Agriculture is ending several pandemic-era programs that connected local farmers to food banks and schools. The USDA is ending the Local Food Purchase Cooperative Agreement Program, a program that helps food banks purchase food from local farmers. And some food bank workers told Channel 9′s Erika Jackson it's affecting their ability to help people. Tens of thousands of people in Mecklenburg County rely on Nourish Up, a food pantry and delivery service to keep their families fed and healthy. Nourish Up is a group working to fight food insecurity and provide healthy options within their food pantries, according to CEO Tina Postel. 'We see so many clients who are suffering from diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease. And so if all we have available to feed people are pop-tarts and pastries at the end of the day, we're making their underlying health conditions worse,' Postel said. READ: Food pantry sets new record serving families as need grows Nourish Up served 164,000 people in 2024, a 19% increase from 2023, Postel said. 'There are too many families and seniors on fixed incomes that are struggling to pay rent or pay for, you know, their necessary medications or buy groceries and sadly, rent eats first,' she said. Nourish Up gives each family member it services a box filled with non-perishables alongside fresh foods such as fruits and vegetables. Those foods come from donations and partnerships, Postel said. One of Nourish Up's partners is Second Harvest Food Bank. The USDA LFPA program helped Second Harvest purchase foods from local farmers. Postel said this can affect the quality of food Nourish Up gives out. 'Any cuts to that might mean that we have to purchase more, you know, nonperishable food instead of the fresh, healthy stuff,' she said. Nourish Up has never had to turn people away, Postel said. And that is still top priority. 'That's our goal, is to make sure that everybody has access to food, and so there's no shame in calling us and asking for help,' she said. READ: Charlotte Mecklenburg Library to give out food monthly The USDA also cut the Local Food for Schools and Child Care Cooperative Agreement, a program that helps connect schools and childcare centers to buy food from farmers. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools told Jackson that it spent more than $500,000 in it's current phase of the program. It hopes to continue to the next phase of funding to buy locally grown products. A USDA spokesperson told Jackson that the two programs were pandemic-era programs and have reached their ends. 'The COVID era is over—USDA's approach to nutrition programs will reflect that reality moving forward,' the spokesperson said in a statement. The administration said it is still focused on 'strengthening food security, supporting agricultural markets, and ensuring access to nutritious food.' But the hope is to focus on more long-term solutions, according to a USDA spokesperson. 'Unlike the Biden Administration, which funneled billions in CCC funds into short-term programs with no plan for longevity, USDA is prioritizing stable, proven solutions that deliver lasting impact,' the spokesperson said. The USDA said all existing agreements under the programs will be terminated in the next 60 days. WATCH: Food pantry sets new record serving families as need grows
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Charlotte organizations, higher education institutions have questions over Trump's freeze on federal grants, loans
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Organizations and higher educational institutions are addressing confusion surrounding a recent Trump administration order, which placed a temporary pause on federal grants and loans. In the Charlotte area, this has sparked wide-ranging questions on everything from Medicaid and federal housing, to additional student loan programs and funding for food programs that help low-income families. The Charlotte-based Nourish Up, formerly known as Loaves and Fishes and Friendship Trays, is a local Meals On Wheels member, and said they are seeking 'clarity' on the status of the program's funding. UPDATE | 'I think there are a lot of unknowns out there,' said CEO Tina Postel. 'Every nonprofit executive that I know is watching the news closely, for more information on how this might impact organizations like ours, but ultimately how it might impact the people that we're trying to help.' Postel noted that federal funding makes up a small part of Nourish Up's overall funding, but noted that the funding can take up a larger percentage for other similar, smaller organizations. The Trump Administration's announcement of a pause on federal grants and loans has led to questions from the organizations, but also those who take advantage of those federally-funded programs. President Trump's sweeping immigration crackdown continues 'We are actively answering phone lines right now from people who are concerned about what their future looks like. Are they going to be able to put food on their table?' said Postel. The order has been cited as being broad, with additional details on the exceptions only coming out after the announcement. Colleges and universities were also wondering what the pause meant for them until late Tuesday morning when the Education Department indicated that Pell Grant and student loan programs would not be affected by the pause. When asked further about individual universities in the Charlotte area regarding any federally-funded research programs that may receive grants, Queen City News was told by one higher educational institution that there was no impact, while another was working on getting a direct answer. The UNC System itself responded to Queen City News' request for comment, making a statement that, 'we are monitoring proposed changes in federal policy and assessing areas where we might need to respond or adjust.' U.S. Senator Thom Tillis, a Republican serving North Carolina, told reporters Tuesday that he had his own concerns about what the pause meant for federal housing. U.S. Rep. Tim Moore, a Republican serving North Carolina's 14th District, issued a press release Tuesday afternoon indicating the pause in grants and loans does not affect FEMA assistance. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
