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Before many households settle into their day, Michelle is already moving through hers, navigating a web of responsibilities that never truly pause. Caregiving shapes nearly every hour.

Michelle cares for three family members. Her adult son has severe autism and rarely leaves the house, perhaps once every few months. Her partner lives with a physical disability and is unable to work. And though her mother doesn’t live under the same roof, Michelle is deeply involved in her care as well, supporting her through ongoing mental health challenges.

Care is not a role Michelle clocks in and out of. It is constant.

To make ends meet, she visits several food pantries each week, stretching Social Security and SNAP benefits as far as possible. It’s not mismanagement that brings her there. Michelle pays her bills on time. She has good credit. There simply isn’t enough to cover everything.

“Coming here helps me pay my bills,” Michelle explains. “If I didn’t, I would have an impossible choice — rent or groceries, NYSEG bill or groceries. We receive income, but it’s not enough, and the pantry helps make it last. We have a lot of out-of-pocket expenses that benefits don’t cover.”

Food from the pantry creates breathing room. It turns a fragile budget into something survivable. It allows Michelle to protect her family’s stability while continuing to show up as a caregiver.

The impact of the pantry reaches beyond finances. When Michelle walks through the door after a pantry visit, her son lights up.

“When I come home from the pantry, my son gets excited,” she says. “It feels like I’m bringing home a treat for him.”

Even with so much on her shoulders, Michelle continues to look outward. She and her partner support a young man experiencing homelessness, someone her partner met years ago while driving a school bus. When he needs food or basic supplies, he knows there is a door he can knock on.

Like many families, Michelle is navigating change. The building she lives in is being sold, and while the future is uncertain, she is doing what she has always done — planning carefully, holding things together, and focusing on today.

You help make that possible. Because of you, caregivers like Michelle don’t have to choose between keeping the lights on and putting food on the table. You turn food into stability, and stability into the strength to care for others, even in the face of uncertainty.

To read the full Spring 2026 Harvester click here.