My Experience with SNAP

I was asked to share my experience with food stamps.

In the fall of 2010, I had been unemployed for almost two full years, not counting brief stints of employment at retail and food service jobs that rarely lasted and paid very little. I had managed to secure temp work doing data entry, but I was forced to live in my friend's RV - parked in his driveway - because I couldn't afford rent. I had enough money to pay some of my bills, but gas took up most of my paycheck and I was worried about how I was going to eat.

I still feel embarrassment today when I think about the application process - I had to go to a large government building, fill out a ton of forms, and then speak to a social worker concerning my situation. I had a BA at the time, but work was hard to find in Portland, especially entry-level stuff. Barista jobs had a four-tiered interview process. The social worker, who was discerning, and very nice, approved me for a small amount of federal assistance - around $125 in food stamps a month.

I ate a lot of rice and ramen. It was not enough to feed myself by any stretch of the imagination. I was able to get by because one of the people living in my house got a job at a pizza parlor and brought home the pizza that was lying around at the end of the day. Even with pizza almost every night, I barely had any of that money left over after a month.

Nobody is living like a king on food stamps, and the program is staffed by caring, serious people who want to make a difference. I am a white, middle class, educated, American male, and it was still a struggle for me. I can only imagine what people without the privileges I have are going through.

- Robert