West Hollywood Came Together to Nourish Its Neighbors

West Hollywood is Coming Together to Nourish Neighbors

When federal funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) was suddenly disrupted in early November 2025 by the federal government shutdown, West Hollywood once again showed what community looks like in action. The City activated its West Hollywood Responds program. an initiative born in 2005 after Hurricane Katrina, to rally residents and local partners to support those struggling to keep food on the table.

The City compiled a roster of partner organizations that serve as the backbone of the response. Seeds of Hope, a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, provided free produce, pantry staples, and even therapeutic gardening programs for local residents. Jewish Family Service Los Angeles continued its Senior Nutrition Program at Plummer Park, serving hot lunches to older adults and people living with disabilities, while also running its SOVA community food pantry. Project Angel Food, long intertwined with West Hollywood’s history, expanded its home-delivered meals to people living with HIV/AIDS and other life-threatening illnesses. World Harvest supported the City’s Food Access Program with grocery vouchers redeemable for fresh produce and essentials. And at the Helen Albert Certified Farmers’ Market, Farm Habit launched a “Shutdown Dollar” program, turning community donations into shopping credits for shoppers whose EBT cards had gone dry.

Beyond city limits, organizations like the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank and FeedLA amplified the impact, ensuring children, families, and seniors across the region could continue to access healthy meals.

The West Hollywood Responds program has long served as a reminder that resilience is woven into the City, itself. Over the years the program has been activated to support victims of natural disasters, humanitarian crises, and global tragedies from the war in Ukraine to earthquakes in Syria and Turkey to wildfires in Maui and Los Angeles County.

This most recent activation of WeHo Responds wasn’t just about food; it was about connection. It’s also about a City that refused to let its people go hungry and a community that turned compassion into action: one meal, one dollar, one neighbor at a time.