The Second Harvest Heartland Care Center celebrated their first year of taking live calls 8am-4:30pm Monday to Friday. Providing live calls means that neighbors can get help right when they want it, alongside traditional options like call backs and appointments.

“I never thought I would need [SNAP] again,” says a neighbor who utilized the Care Center to help enroll in SNAP. “SNAP is a game changer for me due to higher costs.”

Neighbors are encouraged to contact the Care Center phone line, where an advisor provides real time help with applying for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and finding other food resources including their local food shelf and senior food boxes. The Care Center also makes referrals to top requested basic needs like energy, rent, or housing support partners. Neighbors can communicate with staff in English, Spanish, Somali, and Hmong, or use LanguageLine for other languages, and their call is confidential.

In 2024 the Care Center managed 18,004 cases*, with 47,769 touchpoints with neighbors, directing people to the valuable and comprehensive help that they may need. “Our team has the experience and empathy to support neighbors whether it takes one or five contacts to resolve a question,” says Robin Manthie, Director of Neighbor Services for Second Harvest Heartland. “There is no single answer for neighbors seeking food support.”

*A case is classified as one or more touchpoints with a household to resolve a question about access to food programs or SNAP.