10/09/2026
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Here is October’s monthly reflection from Bread of Life’s Executive Director, Gabriella:
“Have you ever watched a trapeze artist? How great it is to know there's a safety net "just in case"! That's what SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) has been for millions of lower-income citizens of the United States. But since November, when the federal One Big Beautiful Bill Act was passed, about 160,000 Massachusetts residents, including 60,000 children, fell off the rolls. The OBBBA tightened SNAP work rules, added more administrative requirements, and barred some legal residents from qualifying. UMass Amherst researchers reported in 2025 that roughly three-quarters of Massachusetts SNAP recipients who are of working age were already employed. Even so, the tightened work requirements, added red tape, and decreased staffing at DTA (the MA Dept. of Transitional Assistance) are making applications and renewals harder, leading some people to abandon the process or lose their benefits.
In fiscal year 2025, the average monthly SNAP benefit in Massachusetts was approximately $190.59 per person to spend on groceries. When that benefit disappears or decreases, especially in conjunction with increased food and fuel costs over the past year, families and older adults get squeezed. More are relying on food pantries like Bread of Life instead, increasing pressure on our entire charitable system that is designed for emergencies, not as a substitute for federal aid to poor families.
Poverty, and economic hardship due to loss or insufficiency of income, take food away from children and older adults. It can take several inputs over time to enable any given family or individual to meet all of their essential food, housing and healthcare needs. To name just a few: education, job creation and training, adequate wages, business loans and mortgages, affordable healthcare and childcare, and equity in access. But until and unless that happens, Bread of Life will always work to make sure that our neighbors caught in the middle can still eat.
Thank you for working with us” -Gabriella
