On Saturday, thousands of families across Southwest Colorado were faced with an unimaginable challenge: zero assistance for groceries for the month ahead. With entire food budgets off the table for our neighbors, local food pantries are preparing for an unprecedented surge in demand – and they need our help.
At first glance, it seems natural to respond with food drives or canned goods. These contributions are deeply appreciated and welcomed donations from those who may not have the means to give money to our hardworking pantries. But if making a monetary donation of any amount is possible, this is the most effective way to meet this moment of vast need.
Here’s why:
1. Your dollars go further.
When you donate money, our food banks can purchase directly from large distributors at wholesale prices, often turning $1 into $5 to $7 worth of food. These nonprofits don’t pay sales tax, so every dollar donated goes entirely toward feeding families.
For example:
- $10 can purchase 35 to 40 cans of soup or vegetables.
- $25 buys enough cereal and milk (fresh or shelf-stable) for 10 families for a week.
- $50 helps stock a pantry’s dairy cooler with milk, cheese and butter for 50 households.
- $100 funds more than 200 pounds of food – equivalent to about 160 meals.
Because we can buy in bulk, we’re also able to choose exactly what’s needed most: milk, eggs, meat, tuna, butter and cereal – the high-protein staples that are hardest to keep in stock.
2. Funds keep the regional network strong.
The Community Foundation and our partner pantries – in Archuleta, Dolores, La Plata, Montezuma and San Juan counties – are working together to coordinate a large, regionwide food order.
Durango Food Bank saw a 64% week-over-week increase in clients and will serve as a central hub for redistribution.
Manna in Durango continues to see rising market visits (up to 1,152 in September) and needs support for dairy and proteins.
Our Community Eats in Pagosa Springs has grown from 250 to more than 325 households a week – adding 14 new families weekly.
Monetary donations make these collaborative efforts possible, ensuring smaller, rural pantries receive equitable access to food when shipments arrive.
3. Food donations, while generous, take more time and resources.
Processing hundreds of individual food donations requires sorting, date-checking and reshelving – hours of staff and volunteer time that delay distribution. Bulk pallets ordered with donor dollars arrive ready to distribute within days.
In moments of crisis, efficiency is everything. A single coordinated purchase can deliver thousands of pounds of fresh food across the region faster than any food drive ever could.
4. Every gift has immediate impact.
Most pantries are operating week to week, especially when it comes to perishables. Monetary gifts go straight toward emergency food orders, helping local families put milk in the fridge, eggs on the table and dinner on the stove.
Your donation to the CERF: SNAP Relief Fund (visit bit.ly/4nz8dcj) will provide immediate support to food access providers in Southwest Colorado including Archuleta, Dolores, La Plata, Montezuma, and San Juan counties and the Ute Mountain Ute and Southern Ute Indian tribes.
Money will be distributed quickly and equitably with oversight by county-level advisory groups made up of experts on the ground, the Community Foundation Serving Southwest Colorado and The Good Food Collective.
And, businesses or organizations that want to help, consider hosting a monetary donation container at your front counter instead of a traditional food drive. It’s a simple, powerful way for customers to give where it matters most.
When every dollar counts, let’s make sure each one works as hard as it can. Together, we can ensure that no family in Southwest Colorado faces this shutdown alone.
