A local organization is working to make sure Georgia families have food this summer. The Latin American Association has three food pantries across Gwinnett and DeKalb counties and needs more culturally appropriate food donations.
Santiago Marquez, who serves as the CEO of the LAA, was a featured guest on Monday’s edition of “Closer Look.” He told show host Rose Scott that a lot of Latino families are in need, but many don’t seek help due to fear or lack of information about available resources.
“For the last five or six years, but certainly have seen a huge increase in demand over the last year or two — and so we feel like we’re doing something, but the demand is huge out there,” explained Marquez.
The surge in demand for food comes amid an unstable economy, inflation, job losses, ongoing deportation efforts under the Trump administration, and changes to the SNAP program under Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
It also comes as Georgia is one of 12 states that have opted out of the SUN Bucks program (also known as Summer EBT). The program provides food to low-income households and households with children so they can access food while school is out. However, starting next summer, Georgia has opted into the SUN Bucks program.
