Rio Rancho area schools organize food drives in face of SNAP crisis

RIO RANCHO — RiceARoni. Honey Nut Cheerios. Pumpkin pie filling. Bush's pinto beans.

Those were just a few of the food donations sitting on a portable shelf in the front office of Ernest Stapleton Elementary School in Rio Rancho on Thursday.

The food drive, which is typical around the holiday season, started around Nov. 1, when the Parent Teacher Association recognized a U.S. government shutdown was looming, said Ernest Stapleton Principal Cheryl Clark.

"When we knew that the benefits and the government shutdown were going to impact families, our PTA said, 'We should start a food drive now to support our families that may be in need,'" Clark said.

Fast forward 43 days later, when President Donald Trump signed legislation ending the longest government shutdown in history, and SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits appeared not to be in jeopardy. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said a day following the shutdown's end that SNAP benefits will be restored in full by Monday.

Trump's signature ending the shutdown capped a week for New Mexico that saw the Legislature pass, and Acting Gov. Howie Morales sign, legislation known as House Bill 1, which provides $20 million a week for food assistance benefits to ensure residents don't go hungry.

Rather than comment directly on politics, Clark expressed optimism for her school's families in need of food assistance.

"Anytime they have resources available to them, then yes, I have optimism," Clark said. "If those resources are lacking, we are going to do what we can to help fill that gap or support what they need."

She could not quantify the amount of food donations but estimated it helped up to 10 families, who visited the school Wednesday for pickup.

"I think families are always grateful for the help that they get," Clark said. "It's a private kind of situation, and we don't make a big production (of it). We're here to help ... We're happy if something we're doing is supporting our families."

Ernest Stapleton was not the only Rio Rancho school to organize a food drive, according to Janna Chenault, the district's elementary school improvement officer. However, the other drives were not in direct response to the political situation regarding SNAP benefits, she said.

The elementary schools work with student councils to conduct a food drive collection for families around the holiday time, Chenault said. Anywhere from 25 to 30 families will get a food basket to take home, she said.

Puesta Del Sol and Colinas Del Norte elementary schools have food pantries available throughout the school year because those schools have a "higher need population," she said.

Meanwhile, Vista Grande and Enchanted Hills elementary schools don't have the physical space to do food pantries but get nutritional goods out in other ways, such as the backpack program. The program allows selected families to take home food every weekend.

Chenault agreed the political developments regarding food assistance programs made this year's food drives all the more significant.

"We definitely had administrators and staff who were concerned for some of their families," Chenault said, "so they were very intentional about finding ways to support families during that time."

She added, "I think that's one of the great things about schools ... We're able to pull community resources together and support our families."