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Author: Aija Cason

Revolve Fund to Provide $20,000 to Support Food Access Efforts in Alabama Black Belt

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For Immediate Release

SELMA – As over 40 million Americans grappled with the reality of not being able to feed themselves or their families due to SNAP delays, Revolve Fund is seeking to help. Revolve Fund today announced a $20,000 community grant to the Black Belt Community Foundation as part of the duo’s continued partnership. The grant will increase the foundation’s capacity to execute programs and fundraise to support food access efforts in the Alabama Black Belt region.

“Revolve Fund complements its core mission of improving capital access for entrepreneurs by partnering with leading organizations that are addressing critical community needs,” said James Wahls, Founder and Managing Director, Revolve Fund. “Like BBCF, Revolve understands at the most fundamental level, everyone should have access to healthy food.”

“BBCF is deeply grateful for the Revolve Fund’s grant to underwrite direct food support in the Black Belt during the current disruption of SNAP benefits, continuing high food costs and unprecedented strain on our local food banks,” said Christopher Spencer, President & CEO, Black Belt Community Foundation. “As BBCF mobilizes resources and community partners during this time, Revolve is one of the first philanthropic organizations to step forward to support our Food for Families in the Black Belt Campaign. We look ahead to our productive, continued partnership with them to positively impact and transform the Black Belt region of Alabama.”

“While our communities need and deserve so much more, we hope our contribution will support the foundation’s ability to work with other philanthropic partners, individual donors, charities, and public partners.” Wahls added.

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470,000 Faces of Hunger: The Urgent Call to Save SNAP

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PHILADELPHIA, PA – Charles Coe, executive director and chief brand compliance officer of the Incredible Kids Learning Organization, today lamented the devastating impacts of the loss of SNAP benefits on children, child care providers and parents. Warning that parents are on a hamster wheel and lacking critical resources, he released the following statement:
 
“If child care providers, many of whom are already struggling, must now work in an environment where SNAP is not available to families they serve, the pain will be compounded. It’s terrifying for them, but also for parents.
 
“It is horrifying for parents to reckon with not being able to feed their children. It’s equally frightening for child care providers to question how they’ll care for kids in their program, at a time when so many lifeline services are being decimated.
 
 
“The loss of SNAP benefits will put more stress on parents and child care providers. Parents often pride themselves on being able to put food on the table. When they cannot do that, it strikes at the core of what it means to be a provider and protector.”
 
 
“We are already living in a period where parents are running on hamster wheels due to a lack of resources. Many parents feel that they may not have the biggest, most fabulous homes; but if they have food to feed their children, they’re content. The loss of SNAP benefits strips away everything that parents cherish.
 
 
“Meals are more than sustenance. Families bond over meals, share admiration for each other over meals, hear updates on the day, and plan the future. Simply put, the family unit is disrupted when there is no food. The love of parents is reflected in the meals they’re able to provide, in the notes they put in their children’s snack pack, and so much more. It is essential that our leaders do everything they can to ensure parents can feed their children.”
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The Scariest Halloween Ever: Child Care Educators Lament the Dire Predicament of Millions of Families

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Early child care educators and advocates today tried to image the scariest part of Halloween 2025, alternating between the government shutdown, the potential loss of SNAP benefits as well as possible Head Start cuts. Even before the shutdown, many families were tinkering on the brink of disaster. Many have yet to fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. Early childhood education advocates issued the following statement:

 

“Ninety percent of the families in our community are in distress,” said Ifrah Nur of Kids Count on Us in Minnesota. “They struggle every day just to meet their basic needs and are on the verge of losing their homes. The income they earn barely covers rent — just enough to keep a roof over their heads. If food assistance (SNAP) is taken away, I don’t know what will happen. Not being able to feed their children would create unimaginable hardship.”

“One parent told me her entire paycheck goes toward rent. After that, she has only $100 left, which must cover utilities,” Nur continued. “She’s a mother of four, without a car, and she can’t afford clothes or shoes for her children. She said, “If I don’t get food benefits this month, I’ll have to use my rent money to buy food. And if I do that, I’ll lose my home.” This is not okay. Families who already have nothing are being punished while those with wealth lose nothing during a government shutdown. The system must protect the most vulnerable — not take away the little support they have left.”
“The people we work with in Georgia will feel real, tangible, deep cuts of not only the government shutdown but proposed budget cuts,” said Erin Clark, an organizer with 9to5 Georgia. “We are seeing that many Head Start programs will face dire circumstances come November 1 when over 140 programs will not receive funding if the government shutdown continues. Not being able to access child care or Head Start programs will impact parents’ ability to go to work and to continue contributing to their workplaces.”
According to the First Five Years Fund, one in three child care providers is facing food insecurity. Losing access to SNAP will have massive ripple effects on the child care industry, both for families and for providers. Reports indicate that than 40 million Americans may go hungry due to a loss of SNAP benefits.
“We know that early childhood educators in Georgia largely rely on programs like SNAP, so we are going to see big impacts not just on families but also for our early childhood educators,” said Clark. “There are a number of providers who will pay from their own pockets to help subsidize child care for parents who may not be able to pay that child care bill week-to-week because they feel very deeply for these experiences that parents are going through. This government shutdown is just highlighting the continued need for long-term investment in child care so that our providers are able to respond to these moments and are better funded.”
“Hearing that families might not have access to food subsidies, means that we must figure out how we can support them,” said Tarrezz Thompson, an Ohio child care provider and advocate with The CEO Project. “We don’t want parents in a position where they’re having to make difficult choices [about how to eat].”
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Child Care Advocates Fear What Will Happen When SNAP Benefits Cease; Urge Action on Shutdown as Lifeline Programs Face Cuts

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For Immediate Release

SAVANNAH, GA – It’s been nearly one month since the federal government shutdown, and child care educators today voiced concern over the dire circumstances facing children, families and child care educators. With funds to programs like SNAP and Head Start running out, many providers fear the families they serve will be unable make ends meet. Erin Clark, a child care organizer with 9to5 Georgia; and Tarrezz Thompson, a child care provider in Ohio, expressed concern for the families they work with on a day-to-day basis. You can watch/listen to their comments here and here.

“The people we work with in Georgia will feel real, tangible, deep cuts of not only the government shutdown but proposed budget cuts,” said Erin Clark, an organizer with 9to5 Georgia. “We are seeing that many Head Start programs will be facing dire circumstances come November 1 when over 140 programs will not receive their funding if the government shutdown continues. Not being able to access child care, Head Start programs, will impact parents’ ability to go to work and to continue contributing to their workplaces.

“We also know that early childhood educators in Georgia largely rely on programs like SNAP, so we are going to see big impacts not just on families but also for our early childhood educators,” said Clark. “There are a number of providers who will pay from their own pockets to help subsidize child care for parents who may not be able to pay that child care bill week-to-week because they feel very deeply for these experiences that parents are going through. This government shutdown is just highlighting the continued need for long-term investment in child care so that our providers are able to respond to these moments and are better funded.” According to the First Five Years Fund, one in three child care providers is facing food insecurity. Losing access to SNAP will have massive ripple effects on the child care industry, both for families and for providers.

“Hearing that families will be in a place where they might not have access to food subsidies, means that we must figure out how we can support them,” said Tarrezz Thompson, an Ohio child care provider and advocate with The CEO Project. “We don’t

want to parents in a position where they’re having to make difficult choices [about how to eat].”

“This is not the first time I’ve had to operate in a space where we’re dealing with food insecurity with our children, but my program was in a more stable space when that was happening,” Thompson added.

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