The New Hope Food Pantry Chicago is accepting donations of unexpired and unopened foods. Some items the pantry needs includes cereal, baby food, baby formula, canned tuna, peanut butter and pasta. A full list of accepted donations can be found on the pantry's website.

Funding for the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is frozen. Reduced benefits are expected to restart later this month. In the meantime, area restaurants are stepping up to help. This list will be updated.

The government shutdown is pausing federal food aid for millions across the country and several Chicago restaurants are working to help.

Local businesses in Chicago are providing free meals to those struggling to put food on the table due to the government shutdown halting SNAP benefits, while the federal government has partially funded the program for November with an emergency fund of $4.

The White House plans to fund about half the expected SNAP food assistance this month amid the government shutdown. It’s unclear when those dollars will reach Chicago households.

From churches to Chicago Animal Care and Control, the local community is coming together in an effort to help those struggling without Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits during the government shutdown.

In the Chicagoland metro area, 12% of households receive SNAP benefits. That's more than 450,000 families. Of those households 42.1% include someone with a disability, 39.5% include an elderly person, and 46.3% have a minor. "I don't let them know that, like, oh, mommy's struggling to put food on the table for you guys," said Kelli Brinnehl.