In New Jersey, a single mother struggled to figure out how to feed her two young sons with $50.

In Oklahoma, a 61-year-old woman questioned whether driving to a food pantry was worth the gas money.

And in Colorado, a woman grabbed food from a Walmart dumpster.

For the 42 million people who rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, the country’s largest anti-hunger program, it has been a chaotic, nerve-wracking week.

Because of the government shutdown, the Trump administration initially sought to stop supplying benefits in November. But after lawsuits, the administration said Tuesday that there would be partial payments from SNAP, but that it was “going to take some time.”

Many recipients have searched for sustenance ever since.

The New York Times asked dozens of

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