Program Spotlight:  SSOP

The Social Service Outreach Program (SSOP) was created in 2006,  and formed a partnership with the Health and Human Services Commission that allows our staff to provide assistance to clients who wish to apply for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps, in addition to TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families), and Medicaid.  

How we work
Houston Food Bank SSOP staff can fill out the application and conduct interviews with clients. Staff can issue Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) cards, known in Texas as a “Lone Star” card.  HHSC caseworkers still determine whether a person is eligible for benefits, but with the assistance of HFB staff, the process is greatly streamlined for the client, which can greatly reduce the time between applying and, if accepted into the SNAP program, when funds are loaded onto the Lone Star Cards.  In addition to having a full-time staff member available to take walk-in clients at the Houston Food Bank warehouse location, SSOP staff are housed at various social service organizations and partner agencies in Harris and nine surrounding counties.  Clients visiting churches, assistance ministries, food pantries, multi-service centers and WIC offices can also access this resource at those locations.  This is important because transportation and the amount of time spent at local HHSC offices are often barriers to clients participating in these programs. 

Myths about Food Stamps
Two common barriers to clients applying for benefits are the stigma regarding being seen as a recipient of food stamps, as well as confusion about who is actually eligible for these programs.

In many counties serviced by SSOP staff, 25 – 50% of clients who are eligible for SNAP are not participating.  Our staff are trained in outreaching techniques that allow them to dispel and break down some of these barriers to help people access these available resources.

Other ways we help

SSOP has a Community Events Team that provides application for state benefits in event-settings such as health fairs, school open houses and education expos.  HFB has dedicated a mobile food distribution unit for a program called SNAP and Groceries To Go, which allows for mobile food distributions, free to the public, to be done in conjunction with application assistance.  This has proven to be a valuable tool in outreaching in rural communities.

SSOP also has a dedicated call center that provides information to clients about pantries and mobile food distributions that service their communities.  They are also equipped to provide resources for other needs, such as area homeless shelters, substance abuse resources and low-cost health providers.  Through a partnership with the Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services (DARS), visually impaired and blind participants in their Vocational Rehabilitation Program assist call center clients with resources, significantly multiplying the number of clients helped telephonically.  The call center staff is also able to provide SNAP application assistance to clients over the phone.

SSOP staff support the Food Bank’s mission of leading the fight against hunger by providing outreach to the community in varied and innovative ways, to make valuable resources as accessible as possible to those in need.