SC Activates One SC Fund to Aid Food Banks

Gov. Henry McMaster announced activation of the One SC Fund, administered by the Central Carolina Community Foundation, to raise emergency donations for regional food banks and local feeding programs as federal SNAP benefits are set to stop on Nov. 1 amid the federal government shutdown. The fund — reactivated after past disasters including the 2015 floods — will channel grants to hundreds of food banks and pantries statewide and directs 99% of donations to local charities, though organizers cautioned the fund "starts at zero." Officials say the cutoff threatens roughly 550,000 South Carolinians (more than 260,000 households), and food banks — including Harvest Hope — are already running low and cannot on their own absorb the expected surge. McMaster mobilized the South Carolina State Guard to assist with unloading and distribution logistics and urged citizens and corporations to make extraordinary donations. Food‑bank leaders warned scaling up operations will take weeks to bring in tractor‑trailers of food and stressed that philanthropy alone may not replace SNAP without action from Washington.