By Jesse Fairbanks

(EXCERPT)

In early childhood, I was under the care of my grandmother. Because child care costs would have consumed her entire paycheck, she retired from her lifelong career in the textile factories and tapped into her Social Security benefits early, at 56 years old. We lived off her $450 a month Social Security check and food stamps through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for most of my childhood.

Although the amount we received was low, it enabled us to purchase more than just butter, eggs, sliced bread, and a few canned goods at the grocery store. We could add proteins, fresh vegetables, and a box of ice cream sandwiches to the weekly food budget. We could eat.

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