In this series, Beyond the Table, we explore the root causes of hunger across our service area, spotlight the advocates working to address those issues and share ways you can join in to help us seek long-term solutions for our communities. Together, we can go beyond the table and work toward a future where everyone has the resources they need to thrive.
Hunger in Cambria County
In the hills and valleys of Cambria County, the beauty of rural living masks a deeply troubling truth: thousands of our neighbors are struggling to put food on the table. Approximately 14.2% of Cambria County residents live below the poverty line, surpassing the national average of 12.4%. Notably, 19.4% of children in the county experience poverty, highlighting the vulnerability of younger populations. More than 19,000 people—roughly 1 in 7 residents—are experiencing hunger in this community.
The rural landscape of the county is a major contributor to food insecurity. Most grocery stores are located in Johnstown or other towns, making it difficult for residents in outlying areas to access them. For those without their own vehicles, lack of public transportation options is a significant barrier to obtaining food.
In Cambria County, hunger doesn’t always look like what people expect. It might look like a senior skipping meals so they can afford their prescriptions. It could be a single parent in a rural township driving miles to reach the nearest grocery store, just so their children can have fresh food. It looks like a child in school struggling to concentrate because breakfast wasn’t an option that morning. It’s a laid-off worker choosing between paying the heating bill or buying groceries. It’s a veteran silently facing an empty fridge at the end of the month. Hunger here hides in plain sight — in quiet sacrifices, in overlooked corners, and in the tough decisions families make every day.
Meet Lisa & Mia
Lisa is one such parent. She and her eight-year-old daughter, Mia, live in the small town of Hastings, PA where the nearest grocery store is a 12-mile drive. Like many families without a car, getting to a store—let alone one that carries fresh produce and affordable staples—can be a monumental challenge. To help her get where she needs to go, Lisa relies on friends and family. On top of that, Lisa held a good job for 22 years until a shoulder injury affected her ability to work. With money tight and access to fresh foods limited, Lisa tries her best to budget “for every dollar,” but sometimes she has to make tough choices.
“The high cost of groceries is so overwhelming,” Lisa shares. “I always run out of food stamps before the next month. I spend so much on basic groceries; I can’t afford fruit or fresh vegetables. Mia absolutely loves fresh fruit and vegetables and when she asks for it at the store I have to say ‘no’ and when she says ‘why mommy’ I have to say I’m sorry baby, but it just costs too much.”
READ LISA AND MIA’S STORY
Food pantries and community meal programs offer lifelines, but they too are limited by distance, resources, and volunteer capacity. Despite these challenges, Cambria County is also home to remarkable resilience and generosity. Community groups, faith-based organizations, food pantries, and volunteers work hard every day to fight hunger—but they can’t do it alone.
Our Work in Cambria County
In Cambria County, we work with 41 partners including food pantries, hot meal programs, and child nutrition partners to distribute food to neighbors in the county who are food insecure. Last year, we supported our partners in the county by awarding more than $84,000 in impact grants. The impact grants funded needs such as equipment, food, and staff.
In addition to our partner network in the county, we provide essential food assistance through our highly accessible Drive-Up Distributions, designed to reduce physical barriers for those seeking food assistance. These events enable individuals and families to receive food without having to stand in long lines or walk extended distances. Each participating vehicle receives a family-sized portion of approximately 50 pounds of food, with a focus on fresh produce and frozen proteins to support balanced nutrition.
We currently host two monthly drive-up distributions in Johnstown and Hastings, which together serve more than 18,000 households annually and distribute over 950,000 pounds of food. These events are a cornerstone of our efforts to address food insecurity in the county.
Additionally, we hold a specialized military-focused distribution in partnership with Veterans Community Initiatives, Inc. This initiative provides direct food assistance to approximately 10,000 veterans and active-duty military members each year, recognizing the unique needs of those who have served.
Through these targeted efforts, we are committed to ensuring that all residents of Cambria County—especially those facing mobility challenges and veterans—have access to nutritious food in a dignified and efficient manner.
We piloted a project through our Summer Youth Cafe Market at an afterschool program partner, Flood City Youth Academy, in Johnstown during the summer of 2023. Through this project, we teamed up with local farmers to source fresh produce for the kids to walk through and ‘purchase’ using youth cafe bucks. Youth cafe bucks are earned by participating in various activities such as tutoring, coding, physical activities and other ways. The program was so successful and well received that we made it a permanent distribution during the summer. During the initial pilot summer, we distributed more than 5,000 pounds of fresh produce all sourced from local farmers to local children in Johnstown.
We are committed to working with partners directly in the communities of Cambria County and through our own distributions.
How You Can Help
There are many ways to get involved with our work in Cambria County. You can get involved with the Food Bank in three simple ways:
1. Advocating for anti-hunger policies with your local and state officials that help neighbors facing food insecurity. Start by signing up for our Advocacy Newsletter to receive timely alerts on current actions and ways to alleviate food insecurity.
2. Volunteering at a Cambria County distribution.
3. Donating to support programs and operations that make our mission possible in Cambria County. Every $1 donated to the Food Bank can help provide up to 3 meals to neighbors in need. Unlike going to the grocery store, we work directly with manufacturers, retailers, local farmers and government agencies to source foods in mass quantities (some of which would have otherwise gone to waste) for distribution.
Are you in need or want to give back to an organization in Cambria county? Visit our Food Finder Tool and type in “Cambria county” when prompted to enter an address or ZIP Code.
Farm to table is an excellent idea but adding a way that the children learn economics was even more valuable. Hats off to the program that provided the children with healthy nutrition and a lesson in life’s practical ways.