A stark reality is hitting California food banks as SNAP benefits remain on hold amid a historic government shutdown.

“Some of the donors have become our clients, and that’s a reality. That’s a wake-up call for us,” Grace & Mercy Charitable Foundation founder Cheryl Francis shared.

Desperate times created an uptick in calls to Francis’ foundation in Lodi over the past week. In turn, it drove them to open on Wednesday, a day they usually don’t hand out food to families.

“Normally, the SNAP benefits would have already been enabled for today, but because they were not there, we had over 30 families line up today to take advantage of the commodities that we have available,” she explained.

But it’s not just the lack of food aid impacting communities. Tough economic times are bringing an extra strain on local food banks.

“The impact of donations, and even food donations or monetary donations, is very limited,” Francis continued. “We have seen it drop off in the last year, at least 50%.”

That has the Grace & Mercy foundation struggling to create balanced meals.

“We’re finding the deficit right now is protein. We’re finding a deficit in fresh produce,” Francis said. “I think the store, because of the impact that it’s going to have on them, they’ve been ordering less, which means the back end, meaning when we go to the back of the store, we’re going to get whatever they have available.”

Chris Rieck, a board member with the foundation, knows the necessity of SNAP benefits all too well. Once homeless and an addict, he said seeing people struggling today is hard to watch.

“It’s the unknown that’s really scary,” Rieck said. “They can’t get food, and they’re watching the cupboards get more and more bare.”

Regardless, they still have faith that a shift will come — and fast.

“I’m 47 years old. I’ve watched things get good and bad. This is probably the worst I’ve ever seen it in my lifetime, but I know there’s brighter days ahead,” Rieck said.

San Joaquin and Lodi community foundations announced on Wednesday that they are responding to the SNAP halt with a new emergency relief called “Food Now Fund.”

The fund will distribute grants to local organizations, including Grace & Mercy Charitable Foundation. The goal is to raise at least $120,000 before the week ends.