Food stamp stigmas

1.2 million: The number of people who access the Food Assistance Program in Ohio

Every once in a while Kaitlyn or I will get a phone call from prospective clients wanting to know what kind of services the Ohio Benefit Bank provides. I've had to answer this question hundreds of times before (from friends and family, too) so I pretty much have my response down to an art form.

"The Ohio Benefit Bank is a free Web-based program that allows you to apply for multiple benefits, such as food stamps, cash assistance, medical assistance and child care. It is essentially a bank of applications that we can fill out for you, because we understand that the process can be really overwhelming. We also provide a free tax assistance program...blah blah blah..."

I may have that part memorized, but the other day I had a phone call that had me drawing a blank.

The call was from a woman who wanted to know what the Benefit Bank was and how it could help her. I started going through my monologue, but I didn't get too far before she burst into tears.

She had been in a car accident a few months ago that left her unable to drive or work, and buried under thousands of dollars in unpaid medical bills. Her husband and mother recently died, and she had no other family she could turn to.

She said she used to make pretty good money, but she never actually put it away. She used to be the type of person who was disgusted by people who used food stamps or needed other kinds of assistance. She told me, "Karma finally caught up to me."

It was an exhausting 30-minute conversation. All I could really do was listen to her and try to reassure her that help was out there and that there was nothing to be ashamed of. That federal money is there for a reason. But I think she just had too much pride to do anything but call.

She made it clear that she didn't want to be on food stamps. She didn't want to be asking for help. She was just terrified of not being able to pay her bills or rent. She had no food in the house, and couldn't really wait 30 days for the food stamps application to go through. I gave her the contact information for a nearby emergency food pantry, but she couldn't make an appointment to come in and see me to fill out some applications because she needed to ask a neighbor if she would be willing to bring her here.

I've never felt so helpless. For people who need help, all we can do is present them with all of the resources that are available for them. It's up to them to actually follow through with it.

I gave the woman my work cell number so she could reach me at any time, but I haven't heard back from her. And unfortunately, I don't think I will. We can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped.

I hope everyone reading this understands that there is no shame in applying for benefits. They are there for a reason! I'm going to pull a Myth-Busters now and give you some common reasons why some people might not apply for food stamps.

1. Resources and assets count against you. FALSE! The only things that determine your eligibility when applying for food stamps is your income and your household size. The government understands that you can't eat your car or your house.
2. Food stamps are welfare. Nope. The Food Assistance Program is a work-support program. You must be in an approved work, training, or educational environment to be eligible. So you can apply for food stamps if you are volunteering or receiving job training. (Or if you're retired, or have a disability...)
3. Shopping with food stamps is not simple and inconspicuous. This used to be true. However, we have done away with those little scraps of paper that used to hold up the line. We now have what is called an Electronic Benefits Transfer Card (EBT), which can be used just like a credit or debit card. You can swipe it and no one has to know that you just accessed your food stamp money.
4. The amount of food stamps a person qualifies for isn't worth the time to apply. The smallest amount of money you can get a month for food stamps is $14. If I handed you $14, would you take it? I thought so. Also, those dollars roll over to the next month if you don't use them. They don't just go away. So you can get your food stamps in January, save up all year, and buy your family a nice Thanksgiving dinner come November. That's just one less thing to worry about.

Spread the word, people. Fight the stigma. Goodnight.