A mom’s message to Congress: Protect food aid
It’s hard to say who enjoys their favorite food more: my daughter, who loves fresh mangoes, or my son, who is obsessed with raw broccoli.
Parents shouldn’t have to think twice about buying kids their favorite healthy foods like fresh fruits and vegetables. But my family can only afford those foods right now because of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program, which provides us — and nearly seven million other Americans — with essential health and nutrition benefits.
Congress will soon decide whether to keep WIC available for anyone who needs it, or shut the doors and leave families like mine out in the cold. I urge Congress to make the right choice.
I joined WIC in 2015 when I was pregnant with my oldest child, and it continued to be a lifeline after surviving domestic abuse. I needed money for groceries; WIC benefits put food on the table. I needed pregnancy support; WIC staff connected me with health screenings. I needed help with breastfeeding; thanks to WIC’s lactation consultants, I breastfed my daughter for two full years.
Eight years later, WIC is still there for my family— and many others in Rochester, where almost 30% of residents live in poverty. But it’s especially critical in the Lyell-Otis neighborhood where I live; nearly all residents here are below the poverty line and many experience hunger. As a benefits coordinator with Foodlink, the regional food bank for Greater Rochester and the Finger Lakes, I meet so many families in my neighborhood and across the city who need help to make ends meet. Without WIC, the challenges we face would be even tougher. As Congress debates the federal budget over the next few weeks, I hope places like Lyell-Otis stay front of mind. Thanks to more generous benefits and continued high food prices, WIC participation has increased significantly since 2020. That’s no surprise. WIC has been keeping moms and kids healthy for nearly 50 years.
But without additional federal dollars, WIC won’t have enough funding to cover anyone who is eligible to join. That would be a disaster. Even worse would be a long government shutdown, which could take benefits away from current participants. That would simply be unthinkable.
I can’t imagine being forced to tell my kids “no” when they ask for fresh mangoes and broccoli. But if Congress steps up, I won’t have to — and millions of other families will have peace of mind, too. WIC is always there for us. Now it’s time for Congress to be there for WIC.