When every penny counts: Facing food insecurity

The pack of bottled water Barbara Lawson used to buy for $2.98 now costs $6.95. Though it may seem like only a few bucks, it’s the kind of number that makes the retiree pause before clicking “checkout.” 

“A lot of stuff, I just bypass,” she said, “because I know it’s not going to fit in the budget.”

Lawson was born in 1951 and raised in Acton. She spent much of her adult life in Maynard working as an office manager for a computer parts business. After her husband died, Lawson said, she could no longer afford to remain in their home. She moved back to Acton and now lives in an affordable housing unit. 

Living on her Social Security, Lawson is one of hundreds of Acton residents receiving SNAP benefits from the state. She also gets support from local non-profits. 

“It frees up space for other essentials,” Lawson told The Acton Bridge. “That’s really what the help does.”

In a town known for its wealth and high home prices, residents like Lawson know firsthand that food insecurity exists in Acton. Escalating prices, fixed incomes, and unexpected expenses are leaving some residents and families quietly struggling to make ends meet — and challenging common assumptions about the town’s affluence. 

Lawson says her experience echoes that of many of her neighbors at Everett Gardens. She said food insecurity usually isn’t about someone being at the very end of their rope. 

“Most people aren’t starving,” she said. “They’re just trying to get by, and they need a little help to make things add up.”

With the cost of living rising, Lawson worries that the budget might get tighter for her and other residents who rely on the assistance to lighten the load. 

‘No typical person’

“There’s always been a misunderstanding of Acton that poverty doesn’t exist here,” said Jill Block, chair of the Hugh Cargill Trust Committee, a town organization that helps residents with short-term financial needs. “That’s not true.” 

According to the town website, Acton’s median household income of $184,000 is 64% higher than the region. The median home value is $1.5 million. 

But those lofty numbers don’t paint the full picture, according to Block. 

When asked what demographic most often comes to the committee seeking help, she said, “There’s no typical person. It’s elderly. It’s single parents.”

In 2023, Acton adopted a residential tax exemption. Though the program has had supporters and detractors, proponents say the break can help seniors who live on fixed incomes or have less money coming in as retirees but still shoulder high taxes on their longtime homes. 

Jennifer Johnson, executive director of Gaining Ground, a non-profit Acton farm that grows and distributes fresh produce to residents like Lawson, said that she agrees that “even in well-resourced communities like Acton” food insecurity exists.

And while her clientele skews older, Johnson said, many who come to Gaining Ground are “families in the margins” or people whose financial equilibrium can be thrown off by one big health care bill or other unexpected life change. 

“A lot of times, people are in a really tough position where they are trying to stretch the dollars that they have,” she said. “They end up having to make choices between ‘Do I pay for my medicine, or do I buy food for my family?’ Those things are stressful.”

Broader context

The Greater Boston Food Bank found in its most recent Statewide Food Access Report that in 2024, one out of three Massachusetts residents experienced some form of food insecurity. That was up from about one in five in 2019.

Acton wasn’t immune to that surge. According to data maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Transitional Assistance, the number of beneficiaries of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps, almost doubled at the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024, compared with the previous 12-month period. 

Johnson said those increases have been felt at Gaining Ground. 

“For many years, there had been about between 30 and 35 households participating,” she said of the non-profit’s Food for Families program, which distributes food daily in the summer months. “In the summer of 2020, that shot up to 100 households, and we’re now at about 120 households that are participating,” she said.

However, not everyone is seeing a wave of increased need right now. Executive Director of the Acton Housing Authority Jennifer Polito says “it’s at the same level.” 

Polito points to one statistic she sees monthly: rent. While some residents of the town’s subsidized housing may miss a payment, it is often quickly remedied when she points the resident to assistance, she said. 

“I’ve actually never been to court for an eviction for non-payment, which is very unusual,” she said. 

Data also shows SNAP participation has declined. At the start of 2024, 701 Concordians received benefits. A year later, at the start of 2025, 580 received benefits. In the last few months of 2025, the number of recipients was similar to what it was in 2021 and 2022. 

Polito said that some of the drop-off could be attributed to people departing the Elm Street state emergency shelter that shut down last summer. 

Here to help

Acton has resources for people experiencing food insecurity, or those who would like to connect a friend or neighbor in need. Here are a few: 

Gaining Ground 
[email protected]
(978) 610-6086
P.O. Box 374, Acton, MA 01742

Open Table
[email protected]
(978) 369-2275
P.O. Box 42, Acton, MA 01742

Bonny Wilbur, community services coordinator
[email protected]
(978) 318-3034
55 Church Street, Acton, MA  01742

Daniel Petitt, Council on Aging Senior Services
[email protected]
(978) 318-3020
1276 Main Street, Acton, MA 01742

Hugh Cargill Trust
[email protected]
(978) 318-3100, ext. 2030

Asking for help

Despite those statistics, Community Services Coordinator Bonny Wilbur says her “phone rings pretty regularly” with calls for help.

Challenges to connecting people to assistance do exist. Everyone who talked to The Bridge on this topic agreed that a fear of surrendering dignity is a significant barrier that discourages people from seeking aid.

Lawson remembers trying to get her neighbor to ask for help, but the person deemed it “too embarrassing.” 

“Yeah, it can be, but sometimes you have to swallow your pride and just say, ‘I’m here because I need the help,’” she said. 

Lawson said that advice comes from experience. 

“You never know when somebody needs help,” she said. “A lot of people need help, and that’s fine. It’s okay to ask for help when you need it.”