As the end of 2025 approaches and holiday celebrations ramp up, community groups across La Plata County are helping residents access healthy, free meals amid rising costs.
Chris Andrews, co-executive director of Durango’s Manna soup kitchen, said his organization will have plenty of festive food – think ham, vegetables, rolls, salad and pie – available for anyone struggling to make ends meet, as well as a warm place to gather and share a meal.
“We plan on preparing close to 1,000 meals,” he said. “If someone comes here to eat at Manna, they can sit down on campus where we have our heated pavilion. On top of that, our food market has food available to anybody. It’s low barrier – people don’t have to prove identity or income.”
Andrews said residents are welcome to come use Manna’s food market from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. through Friday. On Christmas Eve, the market will be open from 3 to 7 p.m. so people working late can go get a warm meal. Additionally, Manna will host a Christmas Day brunch from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., according to the organization’s Facebook page.
He said the holidays pose a challenge for low-income individuals, who, on top of trying to pay rent and bills, may want to buy gifts for their family and friends.
“Durango is definitely a difficult community to live in, especially for lower-income households,” he said. “The holidays come up and folks are trying to put together a meal, they’re trying to get presents for their kids, for their family. At the top of that priority list is obviously maintaining housing. And, unfortunately, a lot of times with bills and housing and everything else, food kind of slips further down.”
Helping alleviate food costs can help them stretch their budgets, Andrews said.
Bayfield’s Pine River Shares, a food share program for Pine River Valley residents, will also be offering food assistance through the holidays. Co-director Sara Keene said the organization handed out boxes of food – with “some Christmas items” – Monday at the Old Middle School Gym in Baylfield.
Both Andrews and Keene said their organizations have seen higher amounts of traffic this year, largely due to how residents have been impacted by rising prices and the lapse in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits caused by the recent government shutdown.
Keene said Pine River Shares has seen such an uptick in people needing food help that it will expand its operations after the holidays.
“We’ve been serving so many people, especially with the SNAP crisis,” she said. “Our lines are just getting so long that we’re going to go to a shopping-style market in February, which will be open three days a week and one evening to accommodate people that are working.”
The stress caused by SNAP’s funding freeze has also caused Manna to see an uptick in residents using its services. However, Andrews said, Manna has received enough support to continue helping people in need get access to healthy and nutritious food through the holidays.
“There’s definitely been some stress going on this last month with the SNAP funding freeze,” Andrews said. “We’ve taken some steps with some community support to purchase some local fresh produce, local meat and some other things to make sure that the food market is fully stocked through the holidays.”
sedmondson@durangoherald.com
