Editor’s Note: The U.S. House passed a funding bill Wednesday night to reopen the federal government after a historic 43-day shutdown, and the bill was signed into law by President Donald Trump. At press time, it was unknown when SNAP recipients would receive their full November benefits.
Speaking in broken English with tears in her eyes, a woman who identified herself as “Carmen” drove up to a supersite distribution event at Houston ISD’s Hattie Mae White Educational Support Center on November 8.
The parking lot looked like the Target shopping center on Black Friday, with vehicles snaking around the building for miles. But those who showed up weren’t looking for the latest toy or gadget.
“Oí que tenían pollo,” Carmen said. “I heard they had chicken.”
Houston Food Bank volunteers did in fact have chicken, gallons of milk and fresh apples and oranges. A sticker with a number denoting the registered family members in each household was given to drivers who entered the lot, and volunteers loaded up the cars with multiples of each available item. Some recipients were given disaster boxes set aside for hurricane season.
The event was exclusively for recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program who didn’t get their grocery debit cards filled this month due to the federal government shutdown. About 3.5 million Texans were affected by the pause in SNAP benefits.
Last weekend was full of political events in Houston, from a visit by California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom to a re-election announcement from Texas’ Republican Gov. Greg Abbott. But no one was protesting or making inflammatory political statements at the food distribution event.
Volunteer Alex Dempsey showed up well before the 8 a.m. distribution began. He donned an orange vest, and started handing out food and milk. Dempsey and his wife moved to Houston three years ago and said they wanted to get more involved and give back.
“The community is clearly in need and because of the government shutdown, it’s a critical time to help,” he said. “Everyone seems so thankful to be here. It’s been a really cool experience. There’s never been a more impactful time to help.”
“Money’s great but nothing gets done unless you have people show up to do the work,” he added. “You sign up online and do a little volunteer briefing. They make it super easy for anyone who wants to come out and help. I’m happy to be a part of it.”
Houston Food Bank president and CEO Brian Greene was there too. It’s known, from his public comments at a press conference last month, that Greene is disappointed that the federal government shutdown has prompted some families to have to make decisions about whether to put food on the table or keep their electricity on.
At a gathering on October 28, Greene tearfully apologized to SNAP recipients who would not be receiving benefits in November.
“There is no cavalry coming this time,” he said. “Normally after a disaster, the rest of the country helps out the affected community. In this case, we’re all in the same boat. Normally the federal government will step in to provide assistance. In this case, the federal government is the cause of the crisis.”
“This is not a natural crisis,” he added. We don’t have to do this. I am sorry you are going through it.”
At last weekend’s distribution event, Greene reiterated that the food bank would hold giveaways until the government reopens and SNAP benefits are fully restored.
Greene said the food banks are not involved in any partisan fights, but the Houston Food Bank, along with the distribution centers in Galveston and Montgomery counties and 300 pantries throughout the Greater Houston area are going to serve the community as long as they’re needed. In about two weeks’ time, those agencies have provided food to at least 230,000 families.
“We’re just here to serve and we’re trying to make as much of a difference as we possibly can,” he said. “We’re not able to replace as much as these families are losing but we can absolutely help them get by, at least from a food standpoint. It will definitely help but it’s not a full replacement.”
A report released Tuesday by the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs found that almost one in four Houston-area households rely on food assistance from the SNAP program and more than 75 percent of SNAP recipients say inflation has affected their spending decisions related to food and energy prices.
Greene pointed out that federal workers haven’t been paid for a month and many are still showing up to work. The Houston Food Bank has set up supersites just for government employees and also partnered with some local businesses to ensure workers can feed their families during the shutdown.
The uncertainty and confusion around whether SNAP benefits will be partially or fully funded has fostered a sense of fear in people who rely on the monthly subsidy to buy their groceries.
“Up until [November 7], the instructions that Texas had received were to calculate these partial payments and they informed us that it would be several days before they could start with that process because they had to redo all the calculations for how much each household would get,” Greene said. “Then on [November 7] they were told to go to full payment.”
“With the Supreme Court ruling [to pause full payment], we don’t know what they’re going to do or when that would actually happen,” he added.
So food bank employees and volunteers continue to show up and load vehicles with fresh food. For people like Carmen, it’s a life-changing gift.
“God bless you,” she said to the volunteers.
It was unclear at press time whether the Houston Food Bank would continue operating supersites through November now that SNAP funding has been restored. Scheduled distribution events, for which participants are asked to pre-register, include:
- November 13 from 3 to 7 p.m. at Community of Faith Church, 1024 Pinemont Drive
- November 15 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Northwest Assistance Ministries, 15555 Kuykendahl Road
- November 18 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Bethel’s Heavenly Hands, 12525 Fondren Road
- November 20 from 3 to 7 p.m. at Community of Faith Church, 1024 Pinemont Drive
- November 22 from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Northwest Assistance Ministries, 15555 Kuykendahl Road
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2025.