Goodfellows meal vouchers provide food and dignity to Omaha area families

The meal vouchers, which provide families with a $50 or $100 gift card to Baker’s, depending on the size of their family, are just one form of aid provided by Goodfellows, which offers emergency assistance to Nebraska and Iowa families.

Goodfellows was started by The World-Herald more than 130 years ago and since 2020 has been administered in collaboration with the United Way of the Midlands.

Jeri Janz, now a volunteer coordinator at Together Omaha, which works to prevent hunger and homelessness in the area, received Goodfellows vouchers about 20 years ago. She was working at the time, but as a single mom of four kids, she said her budget was incredibly tight around the holidays. That’s where the food vouchers came in.

“I still remember how relieved I was when I got the letter that I had been approved, because I knew then that I was going to be able to get food for my kids,” she said. “We were going to be able to enjoy a special holiday.”

While other programs that provide meal kits or pre-selected food pantry items are also helpful, Janz said she appreciated being able to go to the grocery store and pick out items she knew her children would enjoy.

“I knew that it was the generosity of others that was providing me with that voucher, but it made me feel like I was doing something for my kids, too,” she said. “It gave me more dignity.”

According to the United Way, recent studies have found that approximately 35% of families in the Omaha area reported experiencing food insecurity. Food is one of the top needs the United Way sees through its 211 Helpline.

Many families visit local food pantries often, with an average of five to seven visits a year, according to the United Way.

Rising food prices have also affected families needing food and the nonprofits that provide it. Local nonprofits have also seen an increase in the average incomes of those they serve, according to the United Way.

Janz said she thinks people often don’t realize how much food insecurity exists in the community unless they are receiving food assistance or providing it.

“Until you’re in that moment, you don’t get an idea of just how big of an issue it is for so many people,” she said.

Parents who are unable to put food on the table around the holidays can feel ashamed, with a sense that they should be able to provide for their children, but programs like Goodfellows can also have an impact on those parents’ mental and emotional health, Janz said.

“It might seem like something simple, the Goodfellows voucher, but it could make all of the difference in the world for a family,” she said. “It did for me.”