They’re our neighbors. Our friends. Or maybe, ourselves. “For many people, 2020 was the first time they ever used a food pantry,” said Francesca Frisque, Food Pantry Coordinator for the Goodman Community Center. “And so that was a hard barrier for them to overcome: to have to use a service they never thought they would need.” According to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 20 million families received a free meal in the past 7 days. “They have said, ‘I was the person donating. Now I’m here in line,” said Frisque. Nearly half of the families currently receiving free meals rely on food provided by schools. But with many kids still learning from home this semester, more are turning to local food pantries, like the Second Harvest Food Bank, the River Food Pantry, and the Goodman Community Center.