[acb-hsp] Real Life on Food Stamps

[peter altschul]

Real Life on Food Stamps
  by Jennifer Wheeler 02-26-2010
  I am a single mom living alone with my 3-year-old little boy in 
southwest
  Florida.  I have worked most of my life and never thought I 
would be
  using food stamps to feed myself and family, but due to the 
events of the
  last two years, I am the holder of an EBT card (food stamps).  
To make a
  long story short, I was blessed to have my son, but his father 
turned to
  alcohol and drugs and I found myself standing in front of the 
home I owned
  for 17 years, holding an 11 month old baby, with utility bills, 
a
  mortgage, medical expenses, car expenses and more, alone.  I 
had no job or
  babysitter, since my son's father had wanted me to stay home to 
raise our
  son.  I took a deep breath, called some friends, found a loving 
caregiver
  who was like a second mom to my son, found a job, but was 
drowning in
  debt.  A third of my paycheck went to pay for daycare, and the 
rest was
  spent on the house and car expenses, not to mention formula and 
diapers.
  Our church and family rallied together to try to help, but I 
applied for
  food stamps in the state of Illinois.
  After dragging my little boy to a rundown office in a seedy 
neighborhood
  and waiting in endless lines, we were awarded the food stamps.  
I was
  employed by Cub foods (a now defunct grocery store chain) so I 
was very
  aware of the rules and restrictions of the food stamp program.  
I sat
  through many customer service seminars as the pricing 
coordinator and
  customer service manager.  We were told to treat every customer 
with
  respect no matter how they were paying for their purchases.
  Since then, I have moved to Florida to escape a domestic 
violence
  situation with the father of my son and now receive food stamps 
here.  It
  is embarrassing to use the EBT card but I want to feed my son 
and help him
  grow to a healthy adult.
  Food stamps are to be used for food items only.  Even though 
laundry
  detergent, diapers, toiletries and cleaning supplies are 
needed, they
  cannot be purchased with food stamps.  Certain prepared foods, 
like
  rotisserie chickens, and deli sandwiches are not food stamp 
able.  The
  idea behind the food stamps is to encourage recipients to 
prepare meals at
  home.  I am currently a returning college student and am 
enrolled full
  time to get an education and become self sufficient again.  I 
am very
  aware of nutrition and try to choose items that are healthy and 
fresh.  I
  do use coupons with my stamps to stretch my benefits to get 
through each
  month.  I try to purchase produce and healthy items as much as 
possible.
  During this time of lent, I get a lot of cheese and tuna, but 
meats and
  fresh fruits and vegetable are expensive.  Some people have a 
stereotype
  of food stamp recipients as lazy, and are taking advantage of 
taxpayers.
  I am not lazy and worked almost my entire life and am not 
looking for a
  handout.  I am very embarrassed to have to use them.  
Occasionally, I
  purchase Diet Coke for myself or ice cream for a treat for my 
son.  A
  woman behind me in line a few weeks ago noticed I was using the 
EBT card
  and rolled her eyes and said "I am a taxpayer and it angers me 
that you
  can buy stuff on my dime." I was humiliated.  She pointed out 
the
  "goodies" and told me I should be getting macaroni and cheese 
dinners and
  need to find a job.
  Another trip to the grocery store caused me to turn red and 
want to crawl
  under the shopping cart.  I had picked out some organic cereal 
bars for
  my son, who occasionally is a picky eater, and wanted them for 
him to eat
  on his way to daycare.  The product was not tagged in the 
store's
  computer as being food stamp able, so I could not purchase them 
with the
  card.  This product was supposed to be a food item but the 
cashier wanted
  cash from me for them.  I asked to talk to the manager and he 
told me that
  he couldn't sell them to me for payment with the EBT card, and 
of course
  there were four people in line behind me.  The store was in 
error but to
  avoid the stares from the other customers, I asked the cashier 
to take
  them off my bill, since I did not have enough cash to pay for 
them.
  I hope that people think before they draw conclusions when 
seeing someone
  using food stamps.  I do not want a handout, but need to use 
them to
  climb out of the situation I am in.  You lose a bit of your 
dignity each
  time someone gives you a look for using them.  I am grateful 
for the
  assistance my son and I get, but pray that people know that not 
everyone
  using food stamps is a cheat or bum that doesn't want to work 
or pay for
  their groceries.
  Jennifer Wheeler is a full-time student and mother living in 
southwest
  Florida.