ASTORIA, Ore. (KOIN) — The partial shutdown of the federal government, now in its 25th day with no signs of ending, is beginning to take its toll on the United States Coast Guard.

Astoria is one of 21 designated Coast Guard cities in the United States, January 15, 2019 (KOIN)

CBS News reports about 42,000 Coast Guard members are working without pay through the shutdown, having been deemed “essential” employees. An additional 10,000 civilian workers have been furloughed. The service managed to find enough money to make payroll on Dec. 31, but the continued lapse in funding means workers won’t receive paychecks Tuesday. Last week, the Coast Guard said a prolonged shutdown could eventually hinder “mission readiness.”

Increasingly, furloughed workers and unpaid federal employees are turning to food pantries for help.

In Astoria, Stacey Benson — the 2015 US Coast Guard Spouse of the Year — is organizing and hosting a pop-up food pantry to help the 1500 Coast Guard members in and around the area for this weekend.

The pop-up pantry, Be The Light, is working with a local Boy Scout troop and the MOMS Club of Astoria to help put a food pantry together for all Coast Guard families and furloughed government workers in the area.

“I love my military community. My husband was Army, went to the Coast Guard and I love volunteering and sharing my time,” Benson told KOIN 6 News. “I saw a need, I head stories of my friends in my military family, they were struggling. And I couldn’t sit back and not do something.”

She said she had the idea for the pop-up pantry last Friday, “and by Friday afternoon we had everything in place to get it rolling. And it’s taking on a life of its own.”

Some of the donated items for the Be The Light pop-up pantry in Astoria to help the Coast Guard during the federal government shutdown, January 15, 2019 (KOIN)

The community of Astoria — one of 21 named Coast Guard cities in the nation — wanted to do something, she said.

“The response has been overwhelming and positive and amazing and the donations are coming in faster than I ever imagined they would.”

‘We honestly don’t know when we’re getting paid next’

Amanda Gibbs is a Coast Guard wife who stays at home with her 5 young children — ages 9, 7, 3 and 18-month-old twins. She’s trying to stay positive.

Amanda Gibbs is a Coast Guard wife and a mom of 5 who is among the thousands affected by the federal government shutdown, January 15, 2019 (KOIN)

“I don’t have an option to be negative,” Gibbs said. “I have 5 little children that my only job right now is making sure they’re safe and fed and warm and they’re taken care of and that they have no idea that anything is going on.”

The Gibbs family, like a lot of Coast Guard families, don’t make a lot of money. They’re a single-income family and like many live paycheck-to-paycheck.

“To miss one paycheck is devastating. It is bills and groceries not on your table and bills not being paid because of it,” she told KOIN 6 News.

They’ve already made minor adjustments: they canceled their daughter’s piano lessons, they’re not driving except for essential things, they’ve dipped into their savings.

“There are a lot of families that don’t have a savings account, so we feel blessed that we do. But there are some that don’t,” she said. “We honestly don’t know when we’re going to get paid next. There’s no promise of anything, and we’re the ones being directly affected by that.”

The Masonic Lodge in Astoria, January 15, 2019 (KOIN)

The food pantry is set for this Saturday and Sunday, January 19-20, at the Masonic Lodge in Astoria. People should bring their official military ID, federal government ID or federal contractor ID with them to the Masonic Lodge. It will be open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. those days.

Organizers are also accepting pre-paid credit cards and gas cards of $20 or less. Those will be distributed by the local Chief Petty Officer Association.

Donors can bring non-perishable food items along with personal hygiene, cleaning products, baby items and assorted other items to one of 8 drop-off locations in the area. A pickup could be coordinated by calling 541.531.1654.

There are also 2 locations in Warrenton, Oregon — Fred Meyer and Walmart — that offer online ordering and pick-up of donated items.

‘Always be the light and shine bright’

People and companies in and around Portland are putting together food drives and donations. Benson said she never dreamed the pop-up pantry would be this big.

“A friend of mine reminded me to always be the light and shine bright,” Benson told KOIN 6 News, “and that’s what I’m trying to do.”

This shutdown and ripple effects brought them together as a community, Gibbs said. “That there are people rallying around us and supporting us is huge.”

“You have to humble yourself to take the help. It is hard for us and we’re so incredibly grateful,” said Gibbs. “The city of Astoria has been incredible to Coast Guard families.”

Benson’s group in Astoria is, she said, small but mighty. She’s hoping they get so many items they can hold the pop-up pantry on another weekend soon.

“We live by the Coast Guard motto, ‘Semper Paratus.‘ We’re always ready.”