With the high number of people and businesses dealing with their own economic issues, local food pantries are seeing a decrease in food, making volunteers and the needy desperate for some relief.

St. Vincent de Paul, an organization

that helps the homeless and poor, hands out bags of food every other Wednesday from its food pantry. The needy depend on this food and other necessities donated to the organization, but unfortunately the pantry is running

low on donations.

"Food pantries and soup kitchens

are really struggling," said Emily Klein, a past president of UD's St. Vincent de Paul.

"I have noticed that the last few weeks at the pantry that we haven't gotten large donations from grocery stores like we normally

do," volunteer and junior Hilary Marsh said. "We have had to make the bags of food mostly from donations from the community."

Dayton Gospel Mission's outreach

program has also seen a low supply in food over the holiday

season.

"Typically, Christmas time is when we get a huge amount of intake and we store up for the year," said Director and Chaplin Ken Clarkston. "But, this Christmas

(donations were) a lot lighter than normal."

In addition to lower donations, the kitchen, which serves either lunch or dinner every day, has also seen an increase in the number

of people coming for meals.

Despite an increase in the number of people in need and a decrease in donations, the pantries

have still seen support and dedication from donors and volunteers

in the community.

When the St. Vincent de Paul organization knocked door-to-door on UD houses this past fall in its "Trick-or-Treat for Canned Goods" it received a large amount of donated food.

"We had a great response from students and collected as much, or more food this year than last year," Klein said. "We filled an entire car that we took to the St. Vincent de Paul hotel to stock their food pantry."

Even without knocking door-to-door asking for donations, the pantry still receives considerable help.

"The community members are generous and [they're] donating a lot of food, more than I had expected,"

Marsh said.

"If everyone here donated two cans, approximately $1, we would be able to feed hundreds of people,"

Klein said.

Kelly McCabe, current president

of UD's St. Vincent de Paul, said there are other ways to help.

Klein said the St. Vincent de Paul Hotel can use volunteers and the food bank has opportunities

for stocking and distributing food.

"I think it's important for us all to recognize that we are all relatively well-off and that there are so many people out there who don't even have a warm place to stay, let alone enough to eat," Klein said. "It's important for us, as an entire community, to be able to depend on each other, so we need to support those who are struggling more than us right now."

"If it weren't for the contributions,

we wouldn't make it," said Clarkston. "But we'll make it. We always do."