About four months ago, Luthi heard about the Sunnyvale Community Services agency and its food program. "Initially I was not comfortable with the thought of asking somebody for food. But I've found that this is a wonderful program, especially at the end of every month, when we are short of cash, I don't have to worry about shopping for groceries. The food we get takes care of my family for at least a week," says Luthi.

Every month Luthi gets up to 23 pounds of food, which includes cereal, canned food, vegetables, meat, pasta and sauce.

For more than 20 years now, as part of its goal to prevent hunger, Sunnyvale Community Services has been running a food program, handing out food packages once a month to qualifying families. But as the recession maintains its hold on the economy, the demand for food has increased astronomically at this nonprofit agency.

Nancy Tivol, executive director of Sunnyvale Community Services, points out that while between 1999 and 2000 the center helped more than 600 families, the demand had nearly doubled by the end of last year. By December 2002, the agency was helping out 1,157 families, and the numbers are still increasing.

In addition to its food program, SCS provides emergency financial assistance to families on the brink of eviction or those leaving shelters for the homeless or battered women. "There are several situations where people do not have the money for a deposit to rent an apartment. They are faced with the option of living in a car or going to a homeless shelter.

"In these situations we provide the initial deposit amount if the person can prove that he or she has the ability to take care of other monthly expenditures. Ours is onetime financial help. We are not here to eradicate homelessness but rather to prevent it," says Tivol.

Leticia Ruiz is a client of this financial assistance program. Ruiz and her husband live in a studio apartment in Sunnyvale with their 3-year-old son; they are expecting their second child soon. While the family can afford to move into a one-bedroom apartment, they do not have the funds for a deposit and it is here that Sunnyvale Community Services will lend assistance.

The agency also helps qualifying families cover medical expenses, fill prescriptions and pay other critical bills. Last year alone the center offered close to $600,000 in financial aid, and that number is almost double the amount spent between 1999 and 2000.

However, the agency faces its worst crisis ever this year, as the contributions and grants coming to the organization have reduced drastically.

The nonprofit organization has four primary funding sources—government agencies, United Way, corporations and the community. But with heavy state budget slashes this year, Tivol points out that government agency grants will be a mere trickle this year, and other government funds that were available last year on a onetime basis will not be available to assist the needy this fiscal year.

With corporations trying to cut costs, charities are the first to feel the brunt. Big corporations like Applied Materials, AMD, Juniper Networks, Menlo Equities and Philips Semiconductors and foundations such as the Yahoo Employees Foundation and the Lockheed Martin Employees Foundation have traditionally been significant contributors to Sunnyvale Community Services. "Two years ago 50 percent of our funding came from corporate America. But now the corporate money has dwindled to 34 percent," says Tivol.

This year there is also a heavy competition for whatever corporate money is available. Cities and school districts are competing with charitable institutions for funding. Tivol, who has been a part of Sunnyvale Community Services for 12 years now, says that she has never seen such a high level of demand before.

"Even during the last recession, things were not this bad. We have never turned away anybody yet. It's a miracle and a unique achievement. But there has never been a situation like what we are facing now. There has never been a greater gap between what we need and what we get," she adds.

Over the past year the demographics of people coming to the center has also changed significantly. "We have now started getting families in need of financial assistance, where both the husband and wife in the family have been laid off. Many dip into their savings, refinance their homes and then come to us for some onetime financial aid. As long as they can prove that they can take care of expenses the following months, we offer this aid. But then this kind of need is increasing rapidly," says Tivol.

According to the latest statistics, unemployment in Santa Clara County has risen to 8 percent, and the county has the dubious distinction of having the country's highest percentage of part-time and temporary employees—40 percent, compared to the national average of 25 percent. What complicates the situation further is the fact that most of these part-time employees do not receive any benefits, including paid sick leave, and the center is finding itself picking up medical bills with increasing frequency.

Tivol also points out that the budget proposals for this year could remove up to 3 million low-income Californians from Medi-Cal. "Recent changes make many veterans ineligible for care through VA hospitals. HMO co-payments are increasing, and insurance doesn't cover over-the-counter medication," says Tivol.

As if the gloomy economy and its travails were not enough, the war has added a complex dimension to the recession. "Military reservist families are beginning to call for help, as military pay doesn't come close to what their jobs paid," explains Tivol.

The center's food program also faces a severe threat this year, as funding and contributions from Second Harvest Food Bank are expected to drop dramatically. Usually the demand for food is very high during the summer months, when children are at home.

By federal poverty standards, 39 percent of Sunnyvale School District students are eligible for free food. "But we do not know how we are going to meet these increasing demands against a plummeting funding scenario," says a worried Tivol. The center will also face additional costs associated with shifting to a new building this year.

However as part of a community fundraising program, the center is hosting a buffet for 125 people at the Thai Basil in the Town Center on May 6th. The restaurant is donating the buffet; the cost of each plate would ordinarily be $40.

Sunnyvale Community Services has also teamed up with A.G. Ferrari Foods at the Cherry Orchard complex on El Camino Real for a free wine-tasting event every third Saturday for the next three months. The store will feature dozens of new foods and artisan wines from Lombardia and will accept donations for Sunnyvale Community Services.

On June 21st, Specialty Solid Waste and Recycling Center will host a benefit dinner at its corporate headquarters, with 50 percent of the proceeds donated to Sunnyvale Community Services.

For more details about these events and other ways to help, contact Nancy Tivol at 408.738.4321 or ntivol@svcommunityservices.org.

Sunnyvale Community Services is located at 810 W. McKinley Ave., Sunnyvale, 94086.