In San Francisco, over 150,000 people live at or far below the the poverty line, and are in desperate need of food aid; in 2008 the food bank alone distributed 33 million pounds of food to local hungry residents, many of whom are seniors and children.

San Francisco’s Food Security Task Force has just released information showing the huge increase in numbers of people needing food assistance and the growing strain that is being put on food relief agencies. Hunger is soaring and donations have been droppping. Food pantries have seen a 13.5% increase in need from the year before. During the federal fiscal quarter (Jul., Aug, Sep) of 2008 Glide Memorial Church alone saw an 18.9% increase in the number of meals served from the previous year. And our economy is continuing to decline; unemployment in the Bay Area is nearly in double digits.