Kathryn Sears
Senator Reyes visited Woodrow Wilson Elementary School on October 29 to deliver dozens of pumpkins to students. Bright-eyed and beaming with joy, Pre-K and kindergarteners dashed across the campus quad, thrilled by the sight of pumpkins just waiting to be picked. Some children carefully searched for the perfect one, others went for pumpkins too heavy to carry, instead rolling them along the ground with grins stretched across their faces.
“It seems like the kids look for the biggest pumpkins that are almost as big as them to try to carry them,” said California District 29 Senator Eloise Gómez Reyes, who brought the pumpkin patch directly to the schoolyard with help from her staff. “Those are always the best photos—seeing that happiness in the children’s faces, because that’s what we want to do.”
The pumpkin patch initiative began nine years ago, Reyes explained, when a teacher from Cooley Ranch Elementary School in Colton reached out to her newly elected office for help. Since then, the project has expanded to include schools across the district, including in San Bernardino, Fontana, Highland, Rancho Cucamonga, and Upland.
Though some students had ambitious plans to carve or paint their pumpkins, others chose to keep them untouched, admiring them as fall treasures. For the children who selected pumpkins too heavy to carry, Senior District Representative Prince Ogidikpe stepped in to help deliver them to classrooms.
As a proud alumna of Woodrow Wilson Elementary, Reyes said returning to her childhood school made the moment even more special. She recounted stories of her kindergarten teacher, perfect attendance, and helping tutor classmates who only spoke Spanish. “I loved it here,” she said.
But while the festive atmosphere brought smiles to students and educators alike, Reyes acknowledged a sobering reality hanging over the community—many of these same children may soon face food insecurity due to the federal government’s suspension of SNAP (CalFresh) benefits.
“Seeing their joy today makes what’s looming even harder to accept,” Reyes said. “It is almost cruel to do this in our community, in any community.”
The federal government recently announced it will not provide November SNAP benefits due to the ongoing government shutdown, leaving more than 5.5 million Californians without critical access to food assistance come the first of the month. This includes children, seniors, and individuals with disabilities—many of whom live in high-poverty cities like Colton, where the 2025 poverty rate stands at 15.3%, significantly above the national average of 10.6%.
According to Reyes, Governor Gavin Newsom’s administration has taken urgent action by allocating $80 million to stabilize food bank operations and mobilizing the California National Guard to support distribution—mirroring emergency efforts seen during the pandemic. However, she emphasized that these state-level responses should not be necessary, as Congress has already appropriated $6 billion in contingency funds through 2026 to sustain SNAP during emergencies.
“In the lawsuit filed by Governor Newsom, it shows that $1.1 billion that normally comes to California will be cut,” Reyes said. “That’s a tragedy. That’s an absolute tragedy.”
Reyes said volunteers at local food distribution centers have already expressed concern. “They’re telling us they don’t know what they’re going to do,” she said. “We have some generous community members who are helping to provide some of the food products, but that isn’t enough.”
The SNAP disruption, led by the Trump administration’s refusal to utilize available USDA funds, has sparked legal action from California and over 20 other states. Governor Newsom called the move “cruel,” adding, “He doesn’t care about the people of this country, only himself.”
Speaker Robert Rivas and Assemblymember Dr. Corey A. Jackson also issued statements condemning the decision. “This is a moral failure. Trump and the Republicans are holding working families hostage by shutting down the government and cutting off the food lifeline for millions,” Jackson said. “California will continue to stand up for our communities, but we cannot backfill billions of dollars stolen from our communities by the Trump Administration.”
Rivas added, “This is not a drill. Trump’s government shutdown is literally taking food away from our kids.”
When asked what the biggest misconception is about people who rely on SNAP benefits, Reyes was quick to respond.
“If we look at the poverty rate for San Bernardino County, we will find that it is about 25%,” she said. “We have people—seniors, disabled individuals—who cannot work even if they wanted to. We have an absolute responsibility to help the most vulnerable. And that’s why we are taxed—so that we can take care of them.”
Even as Reyes and her team prepare to continue the pumpkin patch initiative this week at Cooley Ranch Elementary—where it all began—she remains focused on the broader crisis.
“These are tax dollars that are going to the federal government,” Reyes said. “This can’t be a party issue or political issue. We have people that are waiting for these benefits to be provided. We need to be there for them.”
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