It’s commonly said that people shouldn’t do much of anything on an empty stomach, but over the past month, it didn’t seem like some residents in the Prairie du Chien area were going to have much of a choice.

The 43-day shutdown of the federal government, which began on Oct. 1 and ended on Nov. 12, disrupted many services people utilize on a daily basis, including the supplemental nutrition program (SNAP). The delays in SNAP benefits left many people without their primary means to acquire food and increased the need for other food resources, such as food pantries and giveaways, in rural communities with limited ways to access assistance. Now more than ever, giveaways like Couleecap’s annual Thanksgiving baskets have become a vital service to the Prairie du Chien community.

On Nov. 20, people braved the frosty weather, lining up outside the Bargain Boutique at 7:30 in the morning. In the first half hour, volunteers from the Couleecap, the Prairie du Chien School District, and Rivercrest gave boxes to more than 130 families.

“People are hurting right now,” said Couleecap Board member Roger Slama. “This is great for the community and great for the volunteers to come out and feel good about doing this.”

The baskets included ham, stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin bars, gravy, canned vegetables and fruits, and a lot more. Jann Sturmer, clothing center and food programs coordinator in Prairie du Chien for Couleecap, said a basket was worth approximately $35 to $40.

“It really captures this meal,” said Emily Schendel, community engagement coordinator for Couleecap. “A lot of these things are not items that are usually readily available in a food pantry, like whole hams, or the right combination of all those things at once to have this meal.”

In 2024, the giveaway served 302 families, totaling 758 people, and this year, Sturmer planned to give to as many as 350 families.

“I hope there aren’t that many people in need, but if there are, we’ll be prepared,” she said.

Schendel said some families who don’t regularly use food resources may come for the Thanksgiving baskets. “We meet folks who are older and only cook for their families once a year, and this helps give them that opportunity to do that and acquire all of those ingredients.”

Sturmer said the food pantry in the Bargain Boutique store saw an uptick in visitors over the past month. She estimated the increase was as much as 25 percent.

“I think a lot of people were panicking,” she said. “I got stopped and asked in public everywhere, ‘What do you think is going to happen?’”

St. Peter Church Pastor Hillary Burns-Kite said some individuals have expressed concerns about being able to afford to live without SNAP or if their benefits are reduced next year.

St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church maintains a small food pantry at the edge of their property, and Burns-Kite said the church has seen a variety of demographics utilizing it, including families existing on one income, elderly with fixed incomes and health complications and young couples with low-income jobs.

Both pantries have seen an increase in public donations to go along with the new wave of food insecurity.

“Our Little Free Pantry has seen more attention, but not in the way we were expecting,” said Burns-Kite. “Although we [haven’t] noticed a significant increase in people taking from it, we have noticed an increase in people giving to the pantry.”

Sturmer said Couleecap’s food pantry has seen a “nice public response with what’s going on in the world.”

“We’ve had lots of great donations — people have pulled together and sent $30 here, $50 there. Our funding has been pretty decent this year,” she said.

One of those donors is Jerry Ziemann, who, along with the Crawford County Democrat Party, led a collection campaign at farmers’ markets and other events, bringing in $168 for the Gays Mills Food Pantry and more than $500 for the Couleecap Food Pantry in Prairie du Chien.

“Things started for me by reading in the [Courier Press] letters to the editor from the Couleecap director about when their funding got cut,” he recalled. “The question was, what can I do? Well, that’s what I could do.”

Ziemann said his efforts go beyond a one-time donation. He continues to bring food to the pantry on a routine basis.

“We have a really fabulous community — a lot of people stepped up, and a lot of people donated money or food to food drives. I think the community really answered the need,” said Sturmer.

Donations from the local community may become more vital than ever depending on how the federal and state governments handle SNAP and other food programs going forward. There is concern that the federal government may not contribute supplies to food programs like they have in the past. Couleecap’s Prairie du Chien food pantry has seen a decline in food distributed from federal sources.

“Over the last year, we’ve definitely seen a decrease in the number of food cases we receive; each truck over the last year has had less food,” she said.

The holiday season is typically a boon period for pantries and precedes a lull that begins in the new year. The public is encouraged to donate to their local food pantries at any time.

“Our pantry is well-served in November and December. Everybody’s in the holiday spirit and donates. It’s January and February when we start hurting,” said Sturmer.

The Couleecap food pantry is located in the Bargain Boutique at 200 East Blackhawk Avenue in Prairie du Chien.

The Little Free Pantry can be accessed at 201 South Michigan Street in Prairie du Chien.