I've been a Salvation Army officer for 39 years. I served in many places across our country. Food insecurity right now at our food lines is trending to new groups that are coming to see us. It's often people who have been our donors. They are now coming to us for help with food as costs go up for rent, housing and transportation. Of all the different costs, food is the one that gets squeezed out. It can be provided by others or...trying to match how we get into that. The others are pretty stable costs, so you can't change them.
We're seeing that shift all across our country. The donations are not enough to meet the demand. During COVID-19, groups of people who were usually not food insecure showed us that the federal government can play a part in food security across our nation. In the last four years, it never really has.
We're asking for innovative and new ideas that will change the face of our country. Many of the presenters have spoken to some of those. We would love to participate in that to see the people served.