Magnolia's Oldest Food Pantry Is Seeing 20 to 30 New Families a Week. The County's Holiday Food Drive Starts Sunday.
By The Magnolia Standard · October 30, 2026
The people running the pantry on Friendship Drive say this year feels different. Their numbers back them up.
Society of Samaritans has fed Magnolia families out of Friendship Drive since 1986. This fall its director, Becky Benham, told Community Impact the pantry is taking on at least 20 to 30 new clients a week, people who have never asked for help before.
"We know that the economy is hurting some of our lower-income families more than normal," Benham said. She also sees more children.
The children's meals show it plainly. Last year, across every school break, the pantry served about 4,000 meals to kids who were out of school. This summer alone it served more than 4,000.
The county picture
The Montgomery County Food Bank, in Conroe, supplies 97 partner pantries around the county. Its chief executive, Scott Burns, said the network has been serving people about 95,000 times a month over the last several months.
The holidays push that higher. In 2025 the count jumped to 105,000 in October and 111,000 in November, Burns said.
Feeding America puts the county's food insecurity rate at 15.5%, against a national rate of about 14%. One figure in its data explains why pantries see people who are working. Of the county's food-insecure residents, 61% have incomes above 165% of the poverty line, the cutoff Texas uses for SNAP. They do not qualify for food stamps.
The SNAP change
The federal budget law passed in July 2025 tightened SNAP: stricter work requirements and required hours, new limits on which immigrants qualify, and fewer exemptions from the work rules, including the one that had covered veterans. Texas SNAP cases have fallen by more than 18% since July 2025, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
Burns was direct about what a pantry can cover. "SNAP is a much bigger resource, and this is not a situation where charity can fill the entire gap," he said.
If you need food
- Society of Samaritans, 31355 Friendship Drive, Suite 500, Magnolia 77355, (281) 259-8452, societyofsamaritans.org
- Montgomery County Food Bank and its partner pantries, mcfoodbank.org
- Come to the Table plans to serve 300 free meals to Magnolia residents on Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 26.
If you want to give
The Food Bank's Holiday Helpings food and funds drive runs Sunday, November 1, through December 31. By its count, each dollar covers up to four meals.
Closer to home, Society of Samaritans will be at the chamber's Fall Fest on Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Magnolia Event Center, 11659 FM 1488, taking donations for its Thanksgiving and Christmas food drives. More on Saturday in our Halloween weekend list.
Sources: Community Impact, October 28, 2026, for Becky Benham's and Scott Burns's comments, the new-client and children's meal counts, the Food Bank's 97 partners and monthly service figures, the Feeding America rates and SNAP threshold shares, the SNAP rule changes, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities caseload figure, the Holiday Helpings dates and the Come to the Table meal. Society of Samaritans, societyofsamaritans.org, for the address and phone. Community Impact's October 29 weekend list for the Fall Fest hours and donations. Our August 28 story on the pantry's 40 years. Nothing here is legal or benefits advice; SNAP eligibility is decided by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. The paper holds no position on the federal law. Corrections to editor@themagnoliastandard.news.