chicago.suntimes.com Open in urlscan Pro
18.66.192.44  Public Scan

Form analysis
1 forms found in the DOM

https://chicago.suntimes.com/search#nt=navsearch

<form class="SearchOverlay-search-form" action="https://chicago.suntimes.com/search#nt=navsearch" novalidate="" autocomplete="off">
  <label> <input placeholder="Search" type="text" class="SearchOverlay-search-input" name="q" required="true"><span class="sr-only">Search Query</span>
    <button type="submit" class="Button-small">Search</button>
  </label>
</form>

Text Content

clock CST_
The Hardest-Working Paper in America | 
Tuesday, June 13, 2023


Subscriber  |  Log out  |  Manage Account Log In  |  Get Home Delivery
Donate
Menu
 * News
   
    * Metro/State
    * Business
    * Immigration
    * Politics
    * Crime
    * The Watchdogs
    * Obituaries
    * Education
    * Health
    * LGBTQIA+ News
    * Transportation
    * Environment
    * La Voz

 * Sports
   
    * Bears
    * High School Sports
    * College Sports
    * Bulls
    * Fire / Red Stars
    * Sports Media
    * Cubs
    * Wolves
    * Sports Saturday
    * White Sox
    * Outdoors
    * Golf
    * Blackhawks
    * Sky / WNBA
    * The Last Dance

 * Politics
   
    * Elections
    * Chicago Elections Voter Guide
    * City Hall
    * Fran Spielman Show
    * Washington
    * At the Table
    * Springfield
    * City Council Directory
    * PolitiFact

 * Commentary
   
    * Editorials
    * Columnists
    * Letters to the Editor
    * Other Views

 * Life & Culture
   
    * Summer Guide
    * Movies and TV
    * Things To Do
    * Dear Abby
    * Horoscopes
    * Murals and Mosaics
    * Taste
    * Music
    * Theater
    * Well
    * Chicago History
    * Chicago-pedia
    * Books

 * Obituaries
   
    * View Death Notices
    * Place a Death Notice

 * Classifieds
   
    * View Death Notices
    * Place a Death Notice
    * View Classified Ads
    * Place a Classified Ad
    * Find a Job
    * Post a Job Opening
    * View Small Business Ad
    * Place Small Business Ad
    * View Legal Notices
    * Place a Legal Notice

 * E-Paper
 * More
   
    * Get Home Delivery
    * Manage home delivery account
    * Newsletters
    * About Us
    * Obituaries
    * Events
    * Podcasts
    * En Español
    * Sun-Times Archives
    * Photo Archive
    * Contact the Sun-Times
    * Manage TV Weekly account
    * Right to be Forgotten
    * Work With Us
    * Back issues & photo reprints
    * Donate Your Car

 * twitter
 * facebook
 * youtube
 * instagram

 * News
   
    * Metro/State
    * Business
    * Immigration
    * Politics
    * Crime
    * The Watchdogs
    * Obituaries
    * Education
    * Health
    * LGBTQIA+ News
    * Transportation
    * Environment
    * La Voz

 * Sports
   
    * Bears
    * High School Sports
    * College Sports
    * Bulls
    * Fire / Red Stars
    * Sports Media
    * Cubs
    * Wolves
    * Sports Saturday
    * White Sox
    * Outdoors
    * Golf
    * Blackhawks
    * Sky / WNBA
    * The Last Dance

 * Politics
   
    * Elections
    * Chicago Elections Voter Guide
    * City Hall
    * Fran Spielman Show
    * Washington
    * At the Table
    * Springfield
    * City Council Directory
    * PolitiFact

 * Commentary
   
    * Editorials
    * Columnists
    * Letters to the Editor
    * Other Views

 * Life & Culture
   
    * Summer Guide
    * Movies and TV
    * Things To Do
    * Dear Abby
    * Horoscopes
    * Murals and Mosaics
    * Taste
    * Music
    * Theater
    * Well
    * Chicago History
    * Chicago-pedia
    * Books

 * Obituaries
   
    * View Death Notices
    * Place a Death Notice

 * Classifieds
   
    * View Death Notices
    * Place a Death Notice
    * View Classified Ads
    * Place a Classified Ad
    * Find a Job
    * Post a Job Opening
    * View Small Business Ad
    * Place Small Business Ad
    * View Legal Notices
    * Place a Legal Notice

 * E-Paper
 * More
   
    * Get Home Delivery
    * Manage home delivery account
    * Newsletters
    * About Us
    * Obituaries
    * Events
    * Podcasts
    * En Español
    * Sun-Times Archives
    * Photo Archive
    * Contact the Sun-Times
    * Manage TV Weekly account
    * Right to be Forgotten
    * Work With Us
    * Back issues & photo reprints
    * Donate Your Car

 * twitter
 * facebook
 * youtube
 * instagram

Show Search
Search Query Search

Coronavirus News Chicago


AS SNAP RECIPIENTS SEE REDUCTION IN FUNDS, CHICAGO RESIDENTS MAKE ADJUSTMENTS:
‘I MAKE DO’


STARTING THIS MONTH, RECIPIENTS OF THE SUPPLEMENTAL NUTRITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM
WILL SEE A DECREASE IN THEIR BENEFITS AFTER A CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC-ERA FUNDING
BOOST ENDED.

By  Elvia Malagón
  [month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] Mar 13, 2023, 8:43pm
GMT
 * Twitter
 * Facebook
 * Email
 * SHARE

SHARE As SNAP recipients see reduction in funds, Chicago residents make
adjustments: ‘I make do’ CLOSE
 * Pocket
 * Reddit
 * Flipboard

Ruth Poole-Rivera, 49, a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
recipient, stands in her kitchen in the Chatham neighborhood, Wednesday, March
8, 2023. Poole-Rivera, who has diabetes and other health problems, said she and
her family made $514 of SNAP assistance meet their needs, but she is worried now
that her allowance is reduced to $281 because she will no longer receive
additional funds from SNAP’s emergency allotments that started in April 2020. |
Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times



As Ruth Poole-Rivera’s family adjusts to losing about $233 in Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, she plans to stretch out food essentials
such as rice and beans as much as she can.

Even with the emergency allotment of SNAP benefits that kept her and other
recipients afloat during the coronavirus pandemic, she continued visiting
Nourishing Hope’s Sheridan Market food pantry once a month. Now, she’s
considering if she’ll have to start making weekly trips from her Chatham home.

“You do what you have to do,” said Poole-Rivera about feeding her household,
which includes grandchildren and elders. “I make do. God provides.”





She is among the more than 2 million Illinois residents who are seeing a change
in their SNAP benefits — a program once known as food stamps — this month. The
emergency allotments that started in April 2020 as part of COVID-19 relief
efforts ended in February.

Ruth Poole-Rivera, 49, a Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
recipient, shows a pack of catfish nuggets she said she got from the food pantry
in the Chatham neighborhood, Wednesday, March 8, 2023. Poole-Rivera, who has
diabetes and other health problems, said she and her family made $514 of SNAP
assistance meet their needs, but she is worried now that her allowance is
reduced to $281 because she will no longer receive additional funds from SNAP’s
emergency allotments that started in April 2020. | Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

The changes come as more Cook County residents are relying on the federal
program. In January, there were 966,163 Cook County residents enrolled in the
program compared to 914,700 in January 2022, according to data from the Illinois
Department of Human Services. Before the coronavirus pandemic, there were
846,385 Cook County residents enrolled in the program in January 2019.

At Nourishing Hope, the Chicago-based organization helped individuals during the
coronavirus pandemic sign up for SNAP who were eligible for the first time or
who could receive expanded benefits, said Jennie Hull, the chief program
officer.

“Things haven’t really gotten better for folks during the last three years,”
Hull said. “And so then you’re pulling away this safety net for people that
they’ve grown to rely on. We’re just concerned how that’s going to impact people
who need our services. We are already seeing an increase in people, and how many
more will we see that need that support now.”

La Voz Sidebar 2023

Lea este artículo en español en La Voz Chicago.







At the Breakthrough Fresh Market on the city’s West Side, the organization was
planning to return to its pre-pandemic allotments that called for clients to
visit the food pantry once a month. But as the demand continues, they decided to
continue allowing people to visit the pantry more than once a month regardless
of where they live, said Cheron Massonburg, the chief program officer.

“It’s really detrimental when you have these sort of ‘food deserts’ in spaces
like Garfield Park,” Massonburg said, recalling recent grocery store closures in
the area. “So it’s really important to us that individuals who live in this
neighborhood and this community have access to food.”

On a recent Thursday morning, more than a dozen people waited outside the food
pantry about an hour before it opened.

It was the first time Willie Mitchell, 62, of Garfield Park, had visited the
food pantry since the coronavirus pandemic. He’s expecting to see a decline in
his SNAP benefits, though he wasn’t sure of the exact figure.




He would have liked for the emergency allotments to continue especially because
he can only eat certain foods for health reasons.

“Chicken is high, everything went up — even vegetables,” Mitchell said. “That’s
why I really came in here — I need vegetables.”

For Israel Munoz, 73, of Humboldt Park, he saw his SNAP benefits drop from $345
to $281. He recently visited the Breakthrough Fresh Market, and he thinks he’ll
have to find other pantries to visit as he tries to stretch his groceries to
also help feed his grandchildren and children.

“It’s a big help,” Munoz said in Spanish about the emergency allotments he had
received. “You buy on the 7th, like yesterday or the day before, and it
finishes. It doesn’t last a month because food is expensive.”



The Irving Park Community Food Pantry is stocking up on essentials such as
shampoo, laundry detergent and feminine products so their clients can stretch
more of their money on food and bills, said John Psiharis, the executive
director. They also encourage residents to take advantage of the donated pet
food the pantry receives.

“The timing of the SNAP decreases isn’t the best because people are paying more
and more,” Psiharis said. “The prices are high for food and then all of a sudden
they are getting less in SNAP so they’re less able to deal with the increased
prices, which will mean that our numbers will continue to go up as people seek
alternatives.”

Ana Al Saad, who volunteers at the Irving Park Food Pantry, enrolled in SNAP
benefits during the coronavirus pandemic after her husband saw a reduction in
his work. Her family of five is bracing for a loss of about $300 in their SNAP
benefits, she said.

She said the family will probably cut back on meat while continuing to shop at
the food pantry once a month.




“They helped us a lot, and I think it’s OK,” Al Saad said about SNAP’s emergency
allotments. “It would be good if they could do it again in the future.”

Michael Nolan, 57, of Portage Park, was receiving an additional $95 in SNAP
benefits during the pandemic, and he liked how the funds were staggered enough
that it would help him get through the end of the month. He thinks recipients
should receive more funds in light of increasing food prices.

“Now that that’s gone, I really needed to come here whereas it might have been
somewhat optional in the past,” Nolan said about going to the food pantry. “Now
it’s a necessity.”

Michael Nolan, 57, who used to get $376 in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program benefits because of the emergency allotments that kicked in during the
COVID-19 pandemic, stands beside his refrigerator that contains food he received
from food pantries in his home in the Portage Park neighborhood on Thursday,
March 9, 2023. Nolan’s $376 will be reduced to $281 due to the ending of
emergency allotments.

Pat Nabong/Sun-Times

Elvia Malagón’s reporting on social justice and income inequality is made
possible by a grant from the Chicago Community Trust.




Autopsy says Olympic sprinter Tori Bowie died from complications of childbirth

Associated Press



Read More

‘The Full Monty’ review: Update on Hulu mostly strips away the fun



Next Up In Coronavirus
Activists call for public health funding, community programs in new ordinance
Pritzker signs bill guaranteeing disability pay to first responders who
contracted COVID-19
Victory over COVID! Nation jubilant!
What does the end of the COVID public health emergency mean?
Medicaid renewal process resumes, putting thousands of Illinoisans at risk of
losing coverage
City went too far in worker crackdown over COVID-19 vaccinations, judge rules
Most Read
Explained: Trump’s indictment and what he has wrong about Obama’s presidential
records
‘This looks like a bribe.’ FBI agent testifies about confronting businessman
James Weiss near Maywood park
FOP demands same 12 weeks of paid parental leave Johnson gave teachers
Parking meter deal keeps on giving — for private investors, not Chicago
taxpayers
Ex-Cook County judge, accused of stealing decorated Tuskegee Airman’s life
savings, is ordered to pay $1.2 million

Sponsored Content

CNN Podcast: Check out these 5 stories CNN
Henry Kissinger explains how to avoid world war three The Economist
AI “might destroy our civilisation”, Yuval Noah Harari says The Economist
L'Oréal's 2022 Annual Report is available L'Oréal Finance
L'Oréal Professional Products: Disruptive innovations L'Oréal Finance
Erkunden Sie New Jersey: Neun tolle Gründe für einen unvergesslichen Besuch New
Jersey Travel & Tourism

The Latest
Columnists
‘The one gift we cannot give’
New book explores our love for pets and the pain that comes when they depart.
By Neil Steinberg
[month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] Jun 13, 2023, 5:23pm GMT
Politics
Waukegan looks to huddle with Bears on new stadium
As the team mulls a new stadium, Waukegan Mayor Ann Taylor pitched the team on
the north suburb’s “opportunities, advantages, and history with the Bears
organization.”
By Mitchell Armentrout
[month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] Jun 13, 2023, 5:18pm GMT
Metro/State
Man found dead in Roseland house fire
Officials responded about 11:50 p.m. to a fire in the 10300 block of South
Calumet Avenue, where they found a 70-year-old man in bed. He was unresponsive.
By Sun-Times Wire
[month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] Jun 13, 2023, 5:02pm GMT
Police continue search for missing Logan Square woman last seen heading to River
North job
Allison Hague, 34, was on her way to work Sunday but never arrived.
By Sun-Times Wire
[month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] Jun 13, 2023, 4:47pm GMT
Olympic Sports
Autopsy says Olympic sprinter Tori Bowie died from complications of childbirth
Bowie, who won three medals at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games, was found dead
last month. She was 32.
By Associated Press
[month] [day], [year], [hour]:[minute][ampm] [timezone] Jun 13, 2023, 3:48pm GMT







 * About Us
 * Get Home Delivery
 * Work With Us
 * Media Kit
 * Terms of Use
 * Privacy Notice
 * Cookie Policy
 * Terms of Sale


ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZabcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz0123456789-_~

x