Dianna Hobbs Issues Urgent Call Amid Shutdown
Amid the historic U.S. government shutdown, Dianna Hobbs, founder of Empowering Everyday Women, calls for urgent support as families face losing SNAP food assistance and nonprofits struggle to meet soaring demand.
The United States has entered day 38 of the longest federal government shutdown in history, with families facing deepening hardship as essential aid stalls.
Amid this crisis, Dianna Hobbs, founder of Empowering Everyday Women Ministries, is sounding a clear alarm: Vulnerable women and children need help now.
“Greetings in the Sweet Name of Jesus Christ,” Hobbs begins in a candid newsletter to subscribers. “My heart is heavy as I watch our nation struggle through this prolonged government shutdown.”
Dianna Hobbs, Founder of Empowering Everyday women
The impasse in Washington, a bitter standoff over funding, has shuttered agencies and halted vital services. Among the most urgent threat, Hobbs points out, is to food security.
Over 40 million low-income Americans, mostly women and children, now risk losing or facing delays in SNAP food assistance.
Some states have already warned that November SNAP payments may not arrive if a federal resolution isn’t reached.
“Political posturing and finger-pointing are heartbreaking,” Hobbs writes. “Our leaders' standoff is hurting women, children, and families. While politicians argue, real lives hang in the balance.”
Missed paychecks for federal workers have only worsened the pain: “Households are thrown into crisis, hunger is growing, and hope, for many, is slipping away.”
Hobbs’ rallying cry is grounded in experience. “Growing up, I intimately understood what it meant to need help,” she says, adding:
“My own family depended on welfare, food stamps, food pantries, and the kindness of churches and nonprofits. I know the shame that comes with an empty pantry and the sting of uncertainty about where the next meal will come from.”
501c3 Nonprofits like Empowering Everyday Women Ministries are being stretched to their limits as soaring need collides with stalled federal support. Even so, her message is action-driven: “God has not called us to stand by and watch. He has called us to respond with love, with service, and with sacrificial giving. This moment is a test, not of our politics, but of our compassion.”
The ministry has ramped up partnerships with food banks nationwide and widened its own food distribution services to help close the gap for families suddenly left without support. Still, the need is greater than any one group can meet alone.
“We simply cannot do it without you,” Hobbs stresses.
Her request could not be more direct: “Today, I’m asking you to give. Your 100% tax-deductible donation, no matter the amount, will go directly to putting food on the table and offering hope to children who, like I once did, are growing up with far less than they need to survive.”
Those able to help can give here.
As the shutdown drags on, Hobbs’ message is a reminder that, while gridlock holds Washington, compassion and faith can still move people to act.
“Together, in faith, let’s be the hands and feet of Jesus to women and families who need us now.”