RALEIGH, N.C. -- When the economy takes a hit, one of the first places it shows is in the local programs that take care of the needy.

For the Salvation Army, this economic downturn has created a difficult time for its food assistance program.

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The agency says it is in danger of running out of food at a time when there are more and more folks who need that assistance.

In Raleigh, both the Salvation Army's soup kitchen and its food assistance program depend on the same food pantry.

“The shelves are empty here,” said the agency’s Ashley Delamar.

The Army’s food pantry is divided into two parts. One provides the daily and weekly grocery assistance to individuals that can't quite afford to purchase groceries, and the other supplies the food for the Salvation Army’s Raleigh shelter and soup kitchen.

The shelves that serve the soup kitchen have a moderate amount of supplies on them, but Delamar says that looks can be deceiving.

“They won’t  last long,” he explained. “We run through them quickly making the nearly 200 meals per day that we need.”

He said the reason shelves aren't full is because donations have dropped off.

“It’s a difficult economic time right now and individuals are holding on to a little more of their disposable income,” he said.

The salvation army and other helping hand organizations are finding that they're facing a double whammy in these tough economic times. Not only are donations dropping, but the need is increasing exponentially.

“We were feeding 30 to 40 people a day. Now we're up to 170 to 180 a day,” said Kitchen supervisor sot Helen Randolph.

She’s  been running the agency’s Raleigh soup kitchen for close to two decades and she's said she’s now worrying about having enough food to prepare each day's meal.

“I used to be able to make a monthly menu, but I can't do that anymore,” she explained.  “I have to make a day-to-day menu.”

The Salvation Army says this is the time traditionally when it beefs up its food supplies in anticipation of the summer months.

The agency says it tends to get increased food requests in the summer because all the kids who'd be getting free or reduced lunches now have to be fed at home. Now it’s worried how it can fulfill that need as well as its current daily needs, too.

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