NORTH ALABAMA (WHNT) — According to the Food Bank of North Alabama, more than 160,000 people in our community struggle with food insecurity.

For Hunger Action Month in September, News 19 is partnering with the Food Bank of North Alabama to help combat that struggle.

We’re collecting monetary donations, so they can stretch your dollar.

A $1 donation can provide 7 meals for people in our community.

The Food Bank of North Alabama’s Development Director, Bobby Bozeman, said the need is very obvious to volunteers. He said they’ve been having more and more people show up at recent food distribution events.

At a produce market on Thursday, he said “We were expecting 300 people but we had over 450 people show up.”

Bozeman explained that in addition to their own food distribution efforts, they also partner with a lot of local organizations.

“We distribute that food to over 200 feeding partner agencies, places like food pantries, soup kitchens, homeless shelters, women’s shelters, anything that uses food as part of its mission,” Bozeman said.

Bozeman said as food prices are going up, people are forced to make harder decisions about where they spend their money.

He said some seniors struggle with the “decision between food and medicine, or food and heating.”

He also recalled an interaction at a recent distribution event at a senior living facility in Huntsville. He said one woman was driven to tears when she received a cantaloupe.

“She had gone to the grocery store the week prior and she could not fit cantaloupe into her budget,” he said. “Something that was previously less than a dollar was now five dollars.”

“She wanted it, couldn’t afford it and like I said, she was crying that we brought her some,” he said.

Bozeman said families are also struggling. He recalled how one family recently came to the food bank because all they had left to eat was “mayonnaise and hot sauce.”

“We’d given them food and there were some snacks in there, but what the kids saw and really got excited about was eggs,” he said.

If you are in a position to help our community, now is the time to take action.

You can text “Foodbank” to 345345 or click here to make an online contribution.