Record numbers of people have turned to Loaves & Fishes during the SNAP crisis.

Last week, the Naperville-based nonprofit served more than 11,500 people — the largest regular weekly food distribution in its history. Loaves & Fishes has extended its hours to help accommodate more people. Those expanded hours will stay in place until the demand normalizes.

“And unfortunately, normal is still a very high level. Before all this happened with SNAP, we were seeing around 10,000 people a week, which is, again, a very high level of demand,” CEO Mike Havala said. “Certainly, we’ll keep our extended hours available until we see signs that this surge that was created by the non-payment of SNAP benefits settles down.”

The Illinois Department of Human Services said Thursday it’s working to distribute full SNAP benefits now that the longest-ever federal government shutdown has ended. The agency said it anticipates that the remaining benefit payments will be made over the coming days, with all SNAP recipients receiving their full November benefits by Nov. 20.

“Between then and now, we expect to see a lot of people that have not received any of their benefits, or certainly have received maybe only partial benefits,” Havala said.

In response, DuPage County plans to shift funds to support food pantries that have become a lifeline for people who depend on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to buy groceries.

The county board showed consensus for using $2.1 million previously earmarked for small human services grants to instead help food providers. The grant program has been funded by investment earnings on American Rescue Plan money.

“We can work with our food pantries and the Northern Illinois Food Bank so they can get that food purchased right away,” county board member Greg Schwarze said.

n September — before the shutdown started — County Board Chair Deb Conroy proposed setting aside funds in the 2026 county budget for an initiative intended to buttress the county’s social service infrastructure in the areas of food insecurity, affordable housing and what she called “community sustainability.” The board is set to vote on the final spending plan at its Nov. 25 meeting, and it won’t kick in until December.

“But we need to act now,” said Schwarze, who chairs the county’s human services committee and outlined the proposal to the rest of the board.

Illinois administers roughly $350 million in federal SNAP benefits per month.

“We’re working as fast as we can to make sure that people have their SNAP cards charged and ready to go,” Gov. JB Pritzker said Thursday at an unrelated event.

Loaves & Fishes is considered the largest food pantry in Illinois with a service area spanning DuPage, Will, Kane and Kendall counties.

Before the government shutdown, most of the people served by Loaves & Fishes did not receive SNAP benefits. Havala calls it the “SNAP gap.”

“Even when SNAP benefits get reinstated at their fulllevels, you still have a huge population that is food insecure, but they’re not eligible for any SNAP benefits, and yet they cannot pay for the basic cost of living,” Havala said.

“So they’re choosing between, Do they buy food? Do they buy medicine? Do they pay the rent? Do they make their car payment? So that dynamic is still, unfortunately, very prevalent throughout our service area.”

In DuPage, more than 67,000 residents receive SNAP benefits, the state reported.

“There is nothing more important than providing food for the people and children of DuPage County. So I would 100% support moving that $2.1 million for food insecurity, absolutely without a doubt,” county board member Cindy Cronin Cahill said.

Loaves & Fishes, meanwhile, seeks donations through a Hunger Action Fund.

“DuPage County has been a great supporter and advocate for those that are food insecure,” Havala said. “And the fact that they are willing to step up and assist organizations to buy food like Loaves and Fishes, it’s just simply amazing and awesome.”

https://www.dailyherald.com/20251113/news/we-need-to-act-now-dupage-county-to-shift-funds-to-help-food-pantries-amid-snap-crisis/