The government shutdown that has paused the distribution of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to qualified Americans has prompted many area residents to scurry and find options to put food on the table.

While the Trump administration says it will restart SNAP food benefits, after two federal judges ruled that freezing payments was unlawful, it will only pay half the amount people normally receive from the Agriculture Department’s SNAP contingency reserve fund. The administration said there is $4.65 billion available in the fund. But that amount is only half of the $8 billion in food assistance payments that people receive each month.

Two federal judges ruled that freezing the payments for the country’s biggest anti-hunger program is unlawful, as 42 million people across the country rely on SNAP to put food on the table.

While area food banks like Plainfield Area Interfaith Food Pantry and Northern Illinois Food Bank that helps people in Will County like in Joliet have yet to see the influx of people looking for food as SNAP benefits only ended Saturday, resident Miguel Castro of Joliet said he is worried his family will go hungry.

“We truly rely on SNAP, and the government shutdown is really hurting Americans who are in need,” he said. “People in power don’t know what it is like to go hungry and worry about where their next meal comes from.”

A Joliet woman who wished to remain anonymous said she is relying on friends and family to get through the crisis.

“What I am doing now is asking my family to give me gift cards early for Christmas so I can buy food at the grocery store,” she said. “This year’s holiday season is not about buying toys. It is about putting food on the table.”

The Plainfield food pantry provides free nutritious food to families on selected days of the year. The next days for distribution are Nov. 18, Dec. 9 and 30 at 22525 W. Lockport St. 

The Northern Illinois Food Bank will host a mobile market distributing free and fresh groceries on Friday, Nov. 7, at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, 205 E. Jackson St., Joliet. The distribution will be from 10 to 11:30 a.m.

The Trump administration has already warned SNAP recipients that there could be lengthy delays before benefits get into the hands of low-income families.

About one in eight U.S. residents get an average of $187 a month per person in SNAP. Nearly 39 percent of recipients are children and adolescents under 18, according to Department of Agriculture (USDA), which administers the program.