Cabarrus County veteran says rising prices make it hard to afford food

KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (WBTV) — On Veterans Day, a disabled Army veteran in Cabarrus County said making sure he has enough to eat is difficult in the current economy. According to the Government Accountability Office, 1.4 million veterans live with food insecurity.

Of the 700,000 veterans in North Carolina, 1 in 9 are food insecure, according to the GAO.

Kannapolis veteran struggles with food costs

Christopher Tew, a disabled Army veteran from Kannapolis, said he is running low on food.

“I’m struggling right now. I gotta make it to Tuesday. I got just a few packs of noodles left,” Tew said.

“Everything’s just gotten so high… the prices are so high, it’s just ridiculous,” he said.

Tew served in the Army for three years. An injury during a training exercise cut his service short. He said he is trying to make ends meet.

Nonprofit offers help beyond food

Tew turned to Veterans Bridge Home, a nonprofit in Charlotte. The organization serves about 1,400 veterans from all branches of the military and offers resources beyond food.

Tew said his heat and air conditioning went out for about three months during the summer.

“In the summertime, my heat and air conditioning went out for about 3 months when it was real hot. So, I called Veterans Bridge Homes,” Tew said.

Steve Cole, executive director of Veterans Bridge Home, coordinated the HVAC repair.

“It’s the first time I had anything done for me like that,” Tew said.

Requests for assistance increase

Cole said he is seeing an increase in demand for resources.

“Families are looking for help with utility assistance, income assistance, food assistance,” Cole said. “Veterans are facing the same challenges that the rest of us are facing.”

From Jan. 1 to Nov. 1 this year, Veterans Bridge Home helped with more than 5,000 cases, Cole said. He said that is up about 20% from almost 4,300 in 2025.

Cole said the biggest increases are in basic needs, including utility assistance, which is up 21% from this time last year. Income and clothing requests are up 35%, he said.

“If you are a veteran or a military family out there and you don’t know where to turn… turn to us,” Cole said.