ALBANY COUNTY — Half of the food pantries in the Capital District are experiencing an extreme increase in need — some have seen 150 to 200 percent increase in need services, according to Natasha Pernicka, executive director of The Food Pantries for the Capital District.

Food security affects more than one in 10 people in the Capital District, she said. “It doesn’t mean they’re starving. It means they don’t have access to healthy food or the resources for it on a regular basis,” Pernicka said at Wednesday’s county coronavirus press briefing.

She oversees a network of 65 food pantries, half of them in Albany County. This includes the food pantry in Altamont, for which the Lutheran Church is having a food drive the week of Aug. 9.

Pernicka went on about the pandemic, “This crisis is exacerbating the struggles a number of people are already dealing with. This year, year to date, a third of the pantries in Albany County are seeing an increase in service … We’re seeing a lot of new people,” she said.

In March, when the state ordered a shutdown of schools and businesses, Pernicka said, “Call volume increased literally 1,000 percent — an indication of new people needing assistance and not knowing where to turn for help.”

After the Great Recession in 2008-09, she said, people were impacted “for years and years.” Pernicka said of the shutdown to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, “People are not going to bounce back. You might see the stock market bounce back but that does not reflect what is happening in our own community.”

Last year, which Pernicka described as a “regular year,” the food pantries in Albany County served 23,000 people more than 147,000 times.

Over 20 percent of the food goes to children and over 10 percent goes to seniors. She described the range of individuals served as “all across the board.”

Pernicka wants to get the word out that the pantries are there to help everyone; service is not income-based.

“It’s based on your need,” she said. “So for individuals who  … are temporarily laid off … you go home with a minimum of three days of grocery items. Some pantries have household products. We also carry diapers and formula.”

She also said, “What we’re hearing is people in need of food assistance either don’t know where food pantries are in their neighborhood, don’t know what a food pantry is, or they think that their food pantry is closed,” said Pernicka.

Throughout the pandemic, she said, “All of the food pantries in our coalition are open.” She gave an example of the food pantry in Bethlehem being open despite the closure of the town hall, in which the pantry is located.

“How do we help people who are vulnerable? They are not able to leave their home. They’re in quarantine,” said Pernicka. She said that volunteers working with community groups came up with delivery options.

She urged homebound residents in need of food to call The Food Pantries for the Capital District at  518-458-1167. The not-for-profit organization also has a website that lists locations, with a map, and various services.

“We are in need of volunteers,” said Pernicka, explaining that volunteers could work remotely or on-site.

She concluded, “Working together, we can do more than any of us alone … We’re continuing to prepare for the long-term.”

Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy, referencing the end of the federal stimulus program for the unemployed, added, “It’s going to be difficult times, now that people lost $600 a week.”

Food drive for Altamont Pantry

St. John’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Altamont will be holding a food drive the week of Aug. 9 to benefit the Altamont Community Food Pantry.

Suggested food items include the following, although any nonperishable food donation is welcome: Pasta, macaroni and cheese, spaghetti sauce, canned tomatoes, Spaghettios, ramen noodles, cereal, oatmeal, tuna, beef stew, corned beef hash, chili, soup, ketchup, mayonnaise, and less common vegetables like mushrooms, spinach, and sauerkraut.

Suggested non-food items include dish detergent, laundry detergent, toothbrushes, toothpaste, shaving cream, deodorant, and shampoo.

Drop off donations any time during the week of Aug. 9 at St. John’s parsonage, 142 Maple Avenue.  Items should be placed on the side porch off the driveway between the church and the parsonage.