As SNAP freeze looms, Washingtonians step up to help their neighbors Ruby de Luna October 31, 2025 / 5:07 pm

Murat Akyuz, co-owner of Toasted — a bagel and coffee shop with three Seattle-area locations — knows firsthand what it means to rely on SNAP benefits. He was 10 years old when his family immigrated to the U.S. from Turkey. In the early years after their arrival, they qualified for SNAP benefits.

“It made a drastic, drastic difference in our life,” Akyuz said. His father was working 70 hours a week, between his job as a valet and as a cook. SNAP, he said, more than helped them buy food.

“That meant my dad could have a Sunday off to spend with his family,” Akyuz said.

Those memories motivated Akyuz and his business partner to help people who are losing their assistance duri

See Full Page