A once-a-month mobile food pantry in Albany County has been forced to turn people away due to federal funding cuts. That’s according to the Rock River program coordinator, Julie McCalister. She said it started with cuts by DOGE last spring, then continued with cuts by the Big Beautiful Bill. She used to get 25% of her funds from the program called Temporary Assistance For Needy Families (TANF). Now, it’s only 10%.
Each month, about 170 families from across the state's largest food desert in south-central Wyoming rely on her program. This month, she had to turn away about 20 people, even as she’s seeing greater need. She’s not sure she’ll be able to keep the program going much longer.
“I had to sit down and think, ‘Boy, do I even wanna say anything? Because I'm gonna scare the teeth out of these people,’ McCalister said. “It's like, well, I don't have a choice. If I'm gonna try to save this food pantry, I have to ring alarm bells and say, ‘Hey, look, this is happening right now in our backyard. I need funding now.’”
She said she needs about $500-$800 to keep the program going in September.
“Actually, I had to go in the corner and cry for a second this month,” she said. “ I got about $27 in donations, because as soon as people realized we needed donations, they started digging through their vehicles and their pockets. These are people who can't afford to give me five bucks. They know I'm gonna fight for it, but I need funding. I need some help.”
The Food Bank of the Rockies is taking donations on behalf of the Rock River program.
