DENVER — As the federal government shutdown nears the two-month mark, Colorado nonprofits serving older adults say the prolonged stalemate is fueling deep anxiety — not just over the loss of benefits, but the fear and uncertainty surrounding them.
“It’s put a lot of strain on both organizations and the seniors that they serve, because this government shutdown… most organizations weren’t prepared for this,” said Steve Olguin, executive director of Bright Leaf Inc., a nonprofit that helps older adults with home repairs.
Now, Olguin’s team has shifted its work to included food deliveries, with about 25 to 30 volunteers driving boxes to those who cannot get to food banks. Even that help can’t keep pace with need.
“Now we have long waiting lists to get a lot of these services, because a lot of these organizations didn’t have the capacity to help everyone,” he said. “We weren’t prepared for a government shutdown to last this long.”
Olguin said many seniors are still waiting on their Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.
“A lot of people are still saying that they still haven’t received their SNAP benefits. There’s only a handful of folks out there that have told us that they have,” he said.
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Federal budget cuts have already left nonprofits “fighting for funding,” Olguin added, and the shutdown has spread those organizations “even thinner.”
Chris Lynn, president and CEO of Seniors Resource Center (SRC), said his nonprofit is also feeling the ripple effects.
“It’s unfortunate that aging services, older adults in general, are not funded very frequently,” Lynn said. “Older adults just tend to be overlooked sometimes. So organizations like ours and others are really struggling.”
Lynn said demand for in-home assistance and other services “is growing exponentially” even as staffing and expansion have stalled. More troubling is the emotional and psychological strain.
“And it’s fear. It’s so much fear,” Lynn said. “Just the threat of it is terrifying when you are an older adult and you’re living on the margin — you cannot miss a check or a benefit. Just the fear of it is traumatizing.”
Seniors Resource Center has started distributing food, despite limited funds.
“No one should be hungry, no one,” Lynn said. “And so if we can help with that, that’s what we’re going to do.”
But both Lynn and Olguin acknowledged there are limits to what nonprofits can provide.
“We want to provide services for people that need them, but when there’s no money to back that up, we just can’t do it. And I know we’re not alone,” Lynn said. “I hate to say that everything revolves around money, but it really does.”
Bright Leaf and more than a dozen other nonprofits plan to rally at the Colorado State Capitol on Friday around 11:30 a.m., demanding action from state lawmakers.
“We should all stand in solidarity together so that we can voice these concerns, you know, and hopefully these elected officials will get on the same page,” Olguin said. “We don’t want to have to go through this again.”
Seniors Resource Center is looking for help in the form of public donations. The Colorado Gives Foundation operates one of the state's largest donation events, Colorado Gives Day. Donations can be made to local nonprofits now through December 9. With a monthly donation, Colorado Gives will match the first gift up to $100, with $250,000 available across all organizations.
