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Ozarks Food Harvest in Springfield has released the locations of food pantries it serves in Texas County amid uncertainty over SNAP food benefits.
Locations
- United Community Help Center — 209 Park St., Licking, 573-674-4184. Hours are 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday – Thursday.
- Texas County Food Pantry — 102A E. Route 17, Houston, 417-967-4484. Hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday – Friday.
- Summersville Senior Center — 127 Rogers Ave., Summersville, 417-932-4044. Hours are 8 a.m. until 1 p.m. Monday through Thursday.
- Houston Senior Center — 301 S. Grand Ave., Houston, 417-967-4119. Hours are 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Lunch is 11:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m.
- Cabool Senior Center — 910 Cherry St., Cabool, 417-962-3860. Hours are 8 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. Lunch is 11:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m.
The funding lapsed for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, known as food stamps or SNAP, feeds about 42 million Americans. A federal judge on Friday ordered that the funding be restored. In Texas County, about 3,221 persons were enrolled in the program in 2022, according to the Federal Reserve of St. Louis. That’s down from 4,930 in 2012, it said.
It is the first disruption of the federally funding but state-administered safety net program that disproportionately feeds women, children, disabled persons and the elderly since it was started in its current form in the 1960s. In previous government shutdowns, states were directed to fill SNAP recipients’ debit cards and the program continued without a lapse.