MATTHEW AND HANNAH’S STORY

Matthew and Hannah W. are parents of 5 living in Lyons.

In 2024, Matthew was laid off with a new baby on the way. SNAP was a lifeline after the job loss, keeping plates full for their children and giving them breathing room when other expenses came up. And then, in April, the worst-case scenario happened: their family lost their SNAP benefits due to DCF’s renewal process. 

“Kansas is so very famous for its ‘pull yourself up by your bootstraps’ mentality. We don’t want to take it away from somebody else who needs help more,” Hannah shared. “We didn’t think we needed help — until we did.”

Simultaneously, Matt had medical issues arise, which caused him to lose work opportunities. Hannah had her baby, and her mother-in-law temporarily lived with them after a house fire. Their SNAP dollars have been stuck in a months-long backlog, forcing them to stretch their benefits while they wait for their case to be reviewed. 

“Lawmakers— they pass bills to help themselves, but then kick everyday Kansans off to the side of the street and every single one of us is trying as hard as we can,” Matt told me when asked about the One Big Beautiful Bill. “I know a lot of people that get SNAP benefits, and I haven’t met a single one of us who is sloughing off or taking advantage of a system, and then we have guys who put on suits and go and pass bills to help themselves and their buddies, leaving the rest of us to have to figure it out six months later.”

Despite attempts to contact them, August 26 is the last communication they’d received from DCF at the time of this interview.