SHREWSBURY, Mass. - As Thanksgiving approaches, local food organizations said they're seeing an increase in clients they serve.

Worcester County Food Bank CEO Jean McMurray said it’s busier than ever.

“The need is very great this year, more than I've ever seen in our 41-year history,” she said.

McMurray said the food bank is preparing to serve thousands of Worcester County residents around Thanksgiving.

“Usually, we do about 2,000 gift cards to area supermarkets, and this year we're doing about 4,000," McMurray said. "The number of turkeys for distributing, it's about the same - about 3,500.”

“Most of my food, the canned goods and things come from the Worcester County Food Bank," said Melinda Nies, who works at St. Anne's Human Services Food Pantry. "We are the agency for the Food Bank, which we are very fortunate. The Worcester County Food Bank is literally right up the street.”

St. Anne’s is one of the nearly 120 agencies who work with the food bank. Nies said the Shrewsbury pantry will be receiving 100 turkeys from the food bank and they’ve seen an increase in demand as well.

“This time of year, we always get an increase no matter what," Nies said. "And sometimes people just are looking for that turkey like, you know, they just need that little extra help.”

McMurray said the increase in clients is due to a number of financial factors.

“We've had high food prices because of inflation since October of 2021," McMurray said. "Then last spring, the federal government rolled back the extra SNAP benefits that people have been receiving since the pandemic. We also add on to that our high costs for rental housing, as well as housing in general, and higher cost for home heating. So, all those things combine to make it very difficult.”

Both Nies and McMurray said food insecurity extends beyond the holiday season and they’re always looking for donations.

“Thanksgiving's a great time," Nies said. "I get so many people calling to help, but honestly, I should do Thanksgiving in March because we still need help in March. We need help in April. We need help in the summer.”

“Think about us again, maybe like in April and August, because we're here year-round," McMurray said. "We are helping people who, you know, right now, somebody might be doing fine, but they could lose their job, or they could get sick and in a couple of months, they might need help, too. So, think about us and help your neighbors, not just once a year, but, you know, throughout the year and especially now that the need is so great.”