Take Care of Yourself and Others--SNAP to it!

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November 2, 2025  Episode 55

Taking Care of Yourself and Others—Snap to It!

On today’s episode, Delbert is NOT on the green couch joining in on the conversation with Hess—because of the SNAP benefits being paused, she is has been asked by more schools to help kids with food insecurity—her time this morning, is taking care of those burdens being placed on families and kids.   Hess wanted to still show up because it is important for you know how it affects so many, including the helpers like Delbert.  SNAP is an important federal program since 1964 that helps families with food insecurity.  It is tied to the Farm Bill, and is implemented and distributed through each state.  A family of 4 could get as much as $900 dollars a month to buy food related items, and it allows them to use other money’s to pay their rent and other expenses.  It helps them afford healthy foods like fruits and vegetables.   Hunger causes other social ills to arise, like kids not being able to study and concentrate, businesses losing income, losing housing, crime rising, etc.  Be a helper, do what you can!!

Peace and Love!   

Come to the Kentucky Select location Monday through Friday 9 AM to 5 PM November 3 to November 14. 1757 Frankfort Ave. Louisville KY.

Or donate on our website:   https://www.caroleskitchen.org

items needed: Cereal, Instant Oatmeal, Cereal Bars, Peanut Butter, Peanut Butter Crackers, Cheese Crackers, Tuna, Canned Pasta Sauce, Pasta, Rice, Cranberry Sauce, Canned Pumkin, Stuffing, Packets of Gravy, Instant Potato's, Canned Green Beans, Canned Corn.

Gods Pantry Donation Website:

https://www.godspantry.org/donate

I am still collecting for my friend José'. In January he was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. After two regiments of chemo, its not good. The doctor has given him 11 months, But José is not going to listen to that! José is optimistic and is living his best life on the farm with his family.
https://gofund.me/e6f61999

In addition to being a podcast host, Hess is also an LCSW--if you'd like to learn more about her work as a therapist, check it out at www.jessicabollinger.com

One of her mission's is for all of our lights to shine--when we see each other and allow ourself to be seen--and we can say to the person in front of us, There You Are! the world will be an amazing place!

Delbert is a top realtor in Louisville, KY, and you can find her at Kentucky Select Properties She will help you find your home, and also help you get the most equity when you sell your house.

Her philanthropic work to continue her sister Carole and niece Meghan is Carole's Kitchen. Blessings in a Backpack helps feed the many hungry students in our schools. The instagram account is: https://www.instagram.com/caroleskitchen.nonprofit?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw=...

Episode Transcript

Hess (02:11):
Hello, this is Hess and I am sitting in the white chair
looking out the window, andunfortunately this morning
Delbert is not on the greencouch joining us.
Delbert's it's not our usuallySunday, our usual Sunday morning

(02:32):
chat.
She contacted me yesterday andgave me a heads up.
She is busy in her advocation ofhelping kids in Louisville with
food insecurity, with the SNAPbenefits stopping yesterday on
November 1st.
She's been asked this past week,like bunches of other schools

(02:53):
have reached out to her for foodsupport.
I think she told me like 15.
So she's doing a bunch of fooddrives.
And I'll list them at the bottomhere for you to help support
that.
And she has some things set up.
So I was up late last nightwatching 11 innings of the World

(03:14):
Series.
I was for the Blue Jays and theyalmost won it.
They had two opportunities towin it, or they had bases full
with one, with only one out.
And all they would've had to dowas a popup fly.
But, and that happened twice,but with the fantastic pitching

(03:35):
by the Dodgers, they struck thebatter out.
And so then with just then withtwo outs, the Blue Jays and I
called'em the ojs'cause I justlike saying that the Blue Jays
were not able to do that pop-upfly thing.
And score a runner.

(03:55):
Anyhow, I wanna talk to you allabout Snap.
What is it?
Yeah, I just wanna show up foryou and like the way Delbert
showing up for food for Kids.
We're all in this together.
Even though I'm alone on thispodcast and it feels a little

(04:17):
empty it feels real emptywithout the Delbert.
You all are important to us andour conversations, you all are
important for these times, andwe can work together and
contribute so we don't have aweather report from Delbert this

(04:38):
morning and her good humor andher partnership on this.
But I know that she's hear inspirit, so I'd just like to talk
to you all and see where you'reat.
Let's have a conversation, aSunday morning chat about where
you're at with what's going onand how you're affected because
you're important to us.

(04:58):
We love you.
What are you doing?
What can you do?
I was at my conference inChicago last weekend and at the
airport in O'Hare.
I asked the ts, I asked this TSAguy are you getting paid?
He said, Nope, but I'm glad Ihave a job.
He replied, A friend I was withthe other night, she's worked

(05:24):
for the IRS for over 20 years.
She had a friend from work withher and they're not getting
paid.
They're on furlough.
Are you gonna get back pay?
We hope so.
She said, so there's a lot offederal workers that aren't

(05:46):
getting their paychecks.
There's a lot of tough stuffgoing on.
So let me go into SNAP and whatis it exactly?
Snap is a supplementalnutritional assistance program.

(06:06):
It was started in 1964 byPresident Lyndon b Johnson.
It helps an average of now getthis number.
It helps an average number of41.7 million Americans a month,
one in eight Americans.

(06:29):
I remember a long time ago Imight see somebody at the
checkout counter.
At the a and p and they hadactual stamps, food stamps, and
now it's a card, like a creditcard.
And that's a whole lot better,right?
There's less embarrassment.
They're just bringing out a cardat the checkout line.

(06:53):
But gosh, one in eight people inAmerica.
That's the embarrassing thing.
Not that people have to use it,but yeah, and it's, it is known
as Food Stamps Anti-Hungerprogram, and it was invented to

(07:14):
help families afford meals.
In the face of rising foodcosts, an average family of four
might receive a little over$900,and it's all income dependent.
Immigration status dependentnon-citizens are not getting
SNAP benefits.

(07:38):
It helps the Americans that aremost vulnerable people with low
incomes, seniors, older adults,children, veterans, people with
disabilities.
It is a major stimulator for theUS economy.

(08:01):
It's a main source of income fora lot of retailers, so when the
SNAP benefits aren't there,retailers are hurt.
It's funded via the farm billand it's administered by the
state.

(08:23):
So it's the state thatdistributes it to eligible
residents.
Then recipients can spend thatmoney on food and beverages.
They're not allowed to spend iton certain things, like alcohol,
tobacco, non-food, things.
You can't use it with preparedfoods.

(08:44):
I, I don't think women can useit for feminine needs.
I think that's crazy.
But it's part of the largestfederal nutritional program.
Redu.
It reduces food insecurity.
Bert's talk so much on our podthat, and it's such a fact that

(09:07):
when kids live with foodinsecurity, and that's what her
program in Louisville is thereto help.
How can that child study, howcan you think when you're
hungry?
I didn't eat breakfast rightaway.
When I got up, I usually do, andit was a couple hours into the

(09:28):
morning that I ate my LoveCrunch cereal and my body felt
pretty uncomfortable.
I started to get hangry.
Can you imagine going all daywithout eating what it feels
like?

(09:49):
So people that are on this SNAPprogram with food insecurity,
they have limited access, togood food and vegetables and
fruit.
And so having this$900 can help'em buy those kind of things,
nutritional food, and also theycould use that$900 they might

(10:10):
spend on food for their rent.
The people that receive snap,they have jobs.
Sometimes they have two jobs.
Usually it's in the serviceindustry.

(10:31):
It's not lazy.
People getting SNAP benefits,God's pantry.
It's a huge warehouse and it'sbased here in Lexington and it
serves about 50 counties incentral and eastern Kentucky.
I remember when I visited therea couple years ago, they told me

(10:53):
that this one county, I forgotexactly what county it is.
It's one of the two poorestcounties in the whole United
States.
Oh.
There's over 600,000 Kentuckianschildren, seniors, and working

(11:17):
families that depend on Snap.
In this whole state, God'spantry sees an increase in
demand from their.
From God's pantry becausethere's about 17,000 federal
workers that work in central andEastern Kentucky that they're

(11:42):
not getting their paychecks, andthat creates more pressure on
God's pantry.
The President for God's Pantrystated that every one meal that
God's pantry serves.
Every one meal that the foodbank provides, the SNAP provides

(12:03):
nine, and God's pantry can'tfill that gap alone.
They need donors.
One in six people in Kentuckydon't know where they're gonna
receive their next meal.
One in five in central andeastern Kentucky don't know
where they're gonna receivetheir next meal.

(12:28):
God's pantry sends its food outto over 500 food pantries and
meal programs across central andeastern Kentucky.
The vision of God's pantry is tonourish life for every
kentuckian to nourish life, forevery kentuckian.

(12:51):
Yeah.
It's not just food, it's life.
It's living.
Their mission is to reducehunger by working together to
feed the Kentucky communities.
Andy Beshear has created a foodemergency across the state.
He said that the monthly cost ofSnap and Kentucky's about a

(13:13):
hundred million dollars.
The monthly cost a hundredmillion dollars and that it
provides assistance to 600,000Kentuckians.
When we have that foodinsecurity, it doesn't help the
overall wellbeing and the mentalwellbeing of people and other
social problems can increasewithout food, incur without food

(13:36):
security, crime and things likethat can increase.
Be one of the helpers.
Do what you can do.
Donate, send money.
Take food.
At the end of the pod I'll putdown Bert's drop off points and
what she needs for her pantriesanyway.

(14:02):
So even though my team, the BlueJays didn't win last night,
there were a lot of people thatwere glad the Dodgers won, a lot
of Dodgers fans, the Blue Jays,they did play really well.
There's really a positive aboutthat.
Yeah.

(14:24):
Another thing that happenedearly yesterday morning was
Martha Lane, Collins died.
She was 88 years of age When shebecame governor of Kentucky.
She was only the third femalegovernor, the only the third

(14:44):
female that had become governorin the United States, and she's
still the only female governorfor Kentucky.
She helped revolutionize thestate's economy.
By landing that Toyotamanufacturing plant there in
Georgetown.

(15:05):
She was also really big inhelping with educational reform
and something that, that we'rein the horse industry really
have benefited from she beganthe Kentucky Horse Park.
Anyway, she's gonna be missed.
She did great things.
Remember Delbert and us havesaid it's not the big things.

(15:27):
Just do whatever little smallthing that you can.
Delbert, I miss you today.
I love you.
We love you pods, and I knowthat you can understand Delbert
leaning in and having to doeverything that she can for
those students with foodinsecurity.

(15:48):
Plus run a real estate business.
To help those kids get somefood.
Y'all peace and love.
I don't mean to be a DebbieDowner on this kind of damp
Sunday morning.
There's a sunshine above thoseclouds.
There's more good than bad, andalways look for the helpers and

(16:12):
be a helper.
We love you.