Noticeable price increases – “How else am I supposed to offer my son anything else?”

“I never thought I would ever have to come to you” – Silvana Schatzer has been hearing this phrase more and more lately. She is one of about 300 volunteers who distribute food at “Tischlein deck dich”. This Tuesday, about 250 people lined up at the issuing office in the forecourt of the Capuchin monastery in Feldkirch – before the war in Ukraine, there were about 90.

In addition to asylum seekers and refugees from Ukraine, many single mothers and fathers and families with several children join the queue. They make up about a third. For the little ones there is fruit, vegetables, meat, drinks and sweets. Everyone who picks up something has an authorization card. You will only receive this if your income situation is known. “Many come to us very late,” Silvana reports.

Part shame, part guilt that you took something from someone even worse off. “However, at a certain point it is no longer financially possible and they still need help.”

Many would burst into tears when they talked about their situation. “A single mom recently told me that if one of her kids gets sick, she’s afraid of it because she can’t even afford the gas to go to the doctor.” Children suffer in many ways. “How am I supposed to offer my son anything else?” a young woman had asked. She works nights in a bakery.

The short work forced her to accept huge financial losses. Inflation has now widened the gap in the household budget.”

Poverty is often just a bill away
One story particularly touched Silvana – that of a mother of twins who is now having twins again. “She doesn’t know how to deal with it.” Certainly an extreme case – and yet this is an example for thousands of people in Vorarlberg who are also at risk of falling. They already have to turn over every cent, if there is an additional burden on top of that, then they are in the middle of poverty.

“It often goes faster than you think,” Silvana says from her own experience. She herself came to “Tischlein deck dich” as a “customer”. “I was recently divorced and alone with my four children.” Working was hardly possible. She also suffers from bipolar disorder, partly due to unpleasant experiences in her youth. She has been receiving a disability pension for two years and her youngest son still lives with her. She barely manages financially. Working at “Tischlein deck dich” gives her support and meaning, she says. “With many stories from our customers, I have to say, Hey, I’m lucky.”

‘Tischlein deck dich’ is also suffering from the crisis
The current price explosion also has consequences for the association “Tischlein deck dich”. Inflation and the increasing number of customers are causing problems. “In particular, rising diesel and electricity costs have become a real burden,” reports club president Elmar Stüttler. You are already at the limit in terms of personnel. “Hopefully we don’t have to tell people that they can only come every two weeks.” Even basic food now has to be bought – flour, sugar, rice, pasta.

In total, 30 to 35 tons of food are distributed per week. “We now buy two to three pallets a month. That is 1500 to 1800 kilos of food. Fortunately, thanks to the donations, we can also finance it.”

Stüttler is extremely critical of the federal government’s “aid package”: “We have to focus completely on those with very low incomes. Instead, the money is poured out with the watering can. If you get 2000 euros, you can limit yourself and don’t starve.” Silvana especially wants the prejudices to be removed: “No one should be ashamed when he or she comes to us.”

Great willingness to donate
The great willingness to donate in Vorarlberg is positive for both. Thanks to the patrons and the enormous voluntary commitment of “Tischlein deck dich” for some people at least the greatest need can be met.