Food pantries open for federal workers during shutdown

Local organizations are stepping up furloughed federal employees struggling to make ends meet during the partial government shutdown.

Veterans Non-Profit in Central El Paso normally helps low income veterans by providing food, clothes, and animal food for those who have served in the armed forces and need help. Now, it has opened its doors to all unpaid federal employees as the shutdown continues.

Federal workers simply have to show up at the offices on the 4300 block of Dyer and explain what it is they need. The organization said they’re hoping to help everyone from Homeland Security to the military.

“I’ve had a representative, a chaplain, call me about some Coast Guard people that I’ve told him we would serve them. It’s just a matter of them coming in. A chaplain called and let me know there were some Coast Guard men and women here and asked if we could fill the need, and I said, ‘of course,'” said Stephen Mills, executive director of Veterans Non-Profit.

Operation HOPE and County Commissioner Robinson will be providing food Thursday. You can pick up food from the Veterans Non Profit office at 4317 Dyer.

Operation HOPE will have their food pantry Thursday at 10:00 a.m. at 96 Dyer, the Northeast Regional Command.