Senior Programs
The West Texas Food Bank serves the elderly, often the most vulnerable to food insecurity, with the dignity they deserve. The Senior Client Choice Pantry and Senior Box Program (CSFP) provide much needed assistance to this increasing number of our population.
According to Feeding America's State of Senior Hunger the food insecurity rate among seniors in Texas is 9.6%, almost 1 in 10. Seniors affected vary by age, gender, income, race/ethnicity, employment/disabilities, location, marital status, and the presence of a grandchild in the household.
We also know that low-income seniors on fixed incomes must sometimes make impossible choices between important necessities, such as medicine, utility bills or transportation costs. Because food-insecure seniors are not always able to obtain the nutrient-rich food that they need to keep themselves healthy and enable their medications to work effectively, we know that many face significant health challenges. Food insecure seniors are more likely to experience negative health conditions such as depression, asthma, heart attack, and congestive heart failure.
More and more "baby boomers" are turning 65. Many are retiring with less money than they expected to save, due to reasons such as the recession, unforeseen expenses, and the increased cost of living in West Texas. Many are caring for grandchildren or other family members. A great many are happily living longer than they expected, but finding the costs of aging to be insurmountable.