BOISE, Idaho — As families prepare for Halloween trick-or-treating, one West Boise neighbor is offering more than candy to her community. Tracy Tilby is setting up a "give or take" food pantry outside her home on Halloween night, responding to concerns about federal food assistance being paused in November.
"I don't want any kids to go hungry, ever," Tilby said.
WATCH: How one neighbor is giving out more than candy this Halloween
The community initiative comes as the USDA will pause federal food assistance to roughly 40 million Americans who depend on those benefits, including an estimated 38% of children, starting Nov. 1.
Tilby noticed many of her neighbors weren't sure what would happen with their food funds and decided to take action.
"I know that people are losing their SNAP benefits starting Nov. 1, and so I have been trying to think of different ways to help the community and encourage others to help the community," she said.
She put out a call to her community and received responses from various neighbors in need.
"I posted some WinCo gift cards and I had quite a few people reach out, single moms, people with kids in the hospital, elderly, people recovering from surgery," Tilby said.
On Halloween night, she'll invite neighbors to donate what they can or take what they need from the outdoor pantry.
"I think I'm going to get some hot chocolate and hot cider. I have ramen, popcorn, granola bars, some things with more nutritional value instead of candy. I think they'll get plenty of candy," she said.
While 25 states are taking legal action against the USDA over the suspension of benefits, Idaho isn't one of them. For neighbors like Tilby, this issue goes beyond politics.
"Some of the people that reached out to me aren't the same political affiliation as me, but I'm going to feed them and I'm going to feed their kids. I don't want anyone to go hungry," she said.
Any leftover food from the Halloween give-or-take pantry will go straight to local food banks the next day.
