Emergency Food & Shelter Program

The Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP) was created in 1983 to supplement and expand the work of local social service agencies, both nonprofit and governmental, in an effort to help people with economic (not disaster-related [i.e. fire victims, floods, tornadoes, etc.]) emergencies. The EFSP funds must be used to supplement feeding, sheltering (including transitional sheltering) and rent/mortgage assistance efforts only.

EFSP is governed by a National Board that selects jurisdictions for funding. Local Boards are convened in those qualifying jurisdictions to determine the highest need and best use of funds and to select Local Recipient Organizations (LROs) that will provide emergency food and shelter services. Each year, needs are to be assessed in an effort to adapt to particular community needs.

This year's appropriation of $153 million brings the total distributed to more than $2.8 billion over the program's 23-year history. Locally this year, Mobile and Washington Counties were awarded $209,764 and $10,968, respectively.

For further information contact Renee Fronden, United Way of Southwest Alabama, (251) 433-3624.