FOR MANY SENIORS THE
MONTHLY DECISION IS FOOD OR…
By Steven Courtney, CalFresh Outreach Manager, Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano
For 74 year-old Theresa of Antioch, her retirement
years are anything but golden. Theresa shares, “I
thought my older years would be easy. Instead
of easy, I’m not making it”. Theresa is not unique. For
a growing number of seniors, that is the reality. For a
troubling number of Contra Costa and Solano County
seniors, they have to choose between paying rent, filling
prescriptions or purchasing food.
More and more seniors are being referred to as
the “hidden hungry”. It is estimated that nationwide
1 in 11 seniors face hunger each day, which often
goes unnoticed as many live alone and face mobility
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issues. The news isn’t any better in California where
the number of food insecure, low-income seniors has
nearly doubled from 2001 to 2014. Seniors make up
the fastest growing food-insecure population in the U.S.
Food insecurity is especially troubling for our senior
population since so many are on medications that must
be taken with food and because sustained good health is
dependent on consistent proper nutrition.
CalFresh, a nutrition assistance program, could be
the answer for many limited income seniors. CalFresh
provides seniors with a monthly benefit auto-loaded
to an EBT (electronic benefit) card, similar to an ATM