According to the Coalition Against Hunger, at least 1 in 7 people in the Philadelphia region struggle to put food on the table.
Lori Klopp from Northeast Philadelphia is one of them.
Lori, a mother of 2 young girls, says times are so tough, she and her husband have gone without food so that their children can eat.
Life was good for Lori Klopp's family until this summer. Her husband was working in H-VAC, and she had a job doing medical billing.
"I started out three days a week, and then it just got slow so they took me down to two days a week," said Lori.
When the company dropped her to just 5 hours a week, her paycheck didn't even cover the cost of childcare.
At the same time, her husband's hours became unsteady.
Lori told Action News that at one point, they were rationing food between so that your children could still eat.
"We didn't eat because the girls needed food. They had to eat. They are the priorities," she said.
Klopp turned to Philabundance for help; a need that's hard for 4-year old Danielle to understand.
"Danielle asked me why we were going to food banks and not the stores, and I told her we just don't have the money," said Lori.
The family's problems were compounded two weeks ago when their condo complex caught fire and their unit suffered smoke damage.
They are now living in a hotel room while Klopp is looking for a job and going to school. Next year, she hopes to earn her degree in health care reimbursement.
"I am always a big believer in things happen for a reason. Everything will work out. You just have to work for it," she said.
If you want to help families in need this holiday season, click on the link below to see the many ways that you can Connect-Share-Give.
6abc Holiday Food Drive http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/feature?section=resources/lifestyle_community/community/events&id=9312813
