More people turning to charities for help due to high inflation

BATON ROUGE, La. (WAFB) - This summer, more people seeking help are turning to St. Vincent De Paul.

Michael Acaldo said the economy is to blame.

“We’ve been here through the great depression, we’ve been here through recessions, but recently this is the worst inflation, at least I have seen, in 30 years. When you get up to 8 percent inflation rate, that impacts the ability of people to put food on the table to take care of necessities,” Acaldo said.

Charities step in when people are in a bind, and with prices going up in nearly every industry, more folks are looking for help with food, shelter, and bills. St. Vincent De Paul is nearly at capacity.

“Some of our beds are full and that is something that we’re trying to manage, but shelter beds open and so there’s availability on a day-by-day basis and we ask individuals seeking that assistance to drop by,” Acaldo said.

Not only is the economy hitting everyday people in Baton Rouge, but it’s also impacting the organizations that give back.

“It impacts us when we go pick up a food donation or a clothing donation, gas prices affect us and the services that we provide, our electric bills are higher, all those things impact our ability to provide those services,” Acaldo said.

With so many people needing help, St. Vincent De Paul is opening a second location to give out hot meals at St. Gerard’s church in north Baton Rouge.

“It’s a way that we can reach people in the 70805 zip code. During the pandemic, we saw a lot of people that were having trouble with transportation and identified that a lot of those individuals were coming from that area of town,” Acaldo said.

St. Vincent De Paul is asking anyone who is able to help them out and give back to the vulnerable in Baton Rouge.

“Give. be a part of the solution here in the local community,” Acaldo said.

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