mRelief’s 2021 Annual Report
Key Takeaways
- mRelief scaled our dignified SNAP enrollment technology to reach 12 regions this year - CA, CT, DC, FL, GA, IL, KS, KY, OR, RI, SC & TX
- One SNAP applicant who used mRelief captured exactly why we do this work: “I’d been trying for six months to try to get somebody [at the state] to call me back. I think you all are great and I appreciate how quickly I’ve gotten a response from you all.”
- What’s next for mRelief: we will bring our solution to a total of 20 states, working with partners who, like us, believe that food is a human right
A Letter from Dize and Zareena
2021 marked notable momentum in anti-hunger reform thanks to collective efforts by those who are committed to ending hunger in America. For the first time in more than 50 years, the USDA updated its Thrifty Food Plan, which is used to calculate the average SNAP benefit per person, increasing benefits by around 25% on average. Temporary waivers afforded families the maximum benefit amount for which they were eligible, putting more food on the table for families that needed it.
We are humbled and grateful to share the progress that mRelief has contributed towards achieving historic transformations to SNAP enrollment on local, state, and national levels. It is with deep gratitude for our supporters, partners, and team that we share mRelief’s impact - we’ve unlocked $1 Billion in SNAP benefits for millions of individuals nationwide since mRelief began.
The past two years have shown us that it takes compassion and community to build a stronger, accessible safety net. In alignment, mRelief built coalitions with the champions of food security - local food banks, pantries, and social service organizations - across 12 states.
While we still haven’t discovered the full breadth of damage that the pandemic has had on food security, just last month nearly 10% of U.S. households experienced hunger and grocery prices soared. To keep meeting the needs of our communities this year, we will embark on an even greater scale - to amplify our work in a total of 20 states, expanding and strengthening our alliances with those who, like us, believe that food is a human right.
bell hooks, educator and author of All About Love, wrote: “rarely, if ever, are any of us healed in isolation. Healing is an act of communion.” May we continue to heal in 2022.
