How San Antonio Businesses Are Helping Cash-Strapped Federal Workers

A bakery, charities and other local businesses are offering freebies, supplies and discounts to unpaid workers during the government shutdown.

By Brian KirkpatrickJanuary 16, 2019 11:45 am, , , ,

From Texas Public Radio:

The San Antonio Food Bank reports it has only seen a trickle of unpaid federal workers seeking food assistance, but it expects the number will grow as more workers try to make ends meet. The food bank is accepting donations from the public to help keep up with the need.

Bakery Lorraine, with locations in the Medical Center, the Pearl and the Rim, is offering federal workers a free cup of coffee and a pastry for every day of the shutdown. They just have to show government ID.

The bakery’s director of operations, James Johnson, says it wasn’t a difficult decision.

“We thought it was a great idea to recognize the fact that folks are struggling a bit financially, and we could do whatever we could to kind of help it out.”

But unpaid federal workers aren’t just getting help with food. Other local businesses, charities and museums are also stepping up to help.

The Texas Diaper Bank at Interstate Highway 410 and Culebra Road is ready to help provide diapers to workers for up to six months. Diaper bank CEO Jorge Medina says diapers are one of the biggest expenses young families can have.

“Imagine a family with just one child, and it’s costing them between $100 and $150 just to purchase diapers a week. You know, it gets very, very expensive,” Medina says.

And the offers don’t stop there. The San Antonio Museum of Art is offering free admission to an affected worker and one guest. The San Antonio law firm of Hilley & Solis is offering to write free wills for furloughed workers who present a government ID.