KSHB 41 reporter Rachel Henderson covers neighborhoods in Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties. Share your story idea with Rachel.
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Leavenworth, home to thousands of federal employees, is feeling the impact of the government shutdown as local food pantries struggle to meet increased demand.
The city is home to several major federal facilities, including Fort Leavenworth, the VA Medical Center and the U.S. Federal Penitentiary.
Leavenworth County Development Corporation numbers from the past year show more than 11,000 federal employees work in the area.
The shutdown has also resulted in the temporary closure of Fort Leavenworth’s only dining hall.
"We definitely see a lot of veterans that come through as well," said Iris Arnold, director of Leavenworth Mission Food Pantry, who has been serving the community for 15 years.
Since the government shutdown began a month ago, Arnold said the pantry has seen a significant increase in requests for help.
"The phone calls have really amped up," Arnold said.
The increased demand has forced difficult decisions.
The pantry reduced its hours from once a week to once a month, and answering calls has become challenging.
"It's hard to give them definitive answers on when we will be open," Arnold said.
On the October food pantry day, they served 377 people in one hour.
Across the entire month, they served almost 800 people.
In addition to getting produce from local grocery stores, the pantry is also receiving fewer supplies from Harvesters due to increased demand across the region.
Arnold described the dramatic change in their inventory.
"This space inside of here used to be filled with 9-10 pallets of food that were taller than me. And so now, when we get our food truck that comes, it's two, three, four pallets of food," Arnold said.
Arnold emphasized the urgent need for community support to sustain their operations.
"We definitely need more help,” Arnold said. “We need consistent help. The consistent donations are what will sustain us.”
The surge in need is evident across multiple local food assistance programs.
Stronghold Food Pantry, which serves local military families in town, saw appointments spike from serving 115 families a month to 496 families in October.
The pantry's founder and CEO, Monica Bassett, reported a 353% spike in their ambassador program, which has grown their reach to 26 states.
Volunteers like Jermaine Wilson are stepping up to help bridge the gap.
"Truthfully, that’s only going to be able to serve just a small fraction of the people that are in our community," Wilson said about the truck of food he helped unload Friday afternoon.
Wilson, who serves as a city commissioner and previously served as mayor, brings personal understanding to his volunteer work at Leavenworth Mission.
"I grew up on the system, so I understand firsthand the importance of a food bank," Wilson said.
Wilson emphasized the importance of community support during uncertain times.
"It's important that we all do our part and give back 'cause we don't know how long this is going to last," Wilson said.
The pantry operates on the fourth Monday of every month from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Their mobile pantry is on the second Friday and fourth Monday of every month.
They also occasionally have a pop-up food pantry.
The pantry is located inside the community store at 123 N Broadway Street, which helps fund the pantry.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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