Metro Social Services asks for $200,000 to expand food pop-ups as indigent burial costs rise

Renee Pratt, executive director of Metro Social Services, told the Budget and Finance Committee at a departmental budget hearing that her office is requesting $200,000 to expand food pop-ups and home- and community-based supports and that indigent burial costs have increased roughly 50 percent.

The request comes as the department reported heavy demand across a changing client base: staff said the department provided about 64,000 services in 2024, delivered roughly 80,000 meals to seniors and people with disabilities, and held large community giveaways including the Ride to Thrive event that drew more than 1,000 attendees. Pratt said the department’s average customer has an annual salary of about $11,015.

"We are committed to the mission of Metro Social Services to serve the most vulnerable citizens in our community," Pratt said during the hearing. She described new and pilot programs the department has launched, including mobile food pop-ups, a curbside trash enrollment assistance program for seniors, a refrigerator-magnet system to flag emergency documents, and a new focus on welfare-check calls for seniors and people with disabilities.

Nut Graf: The department said demand is broadening beyond historically low-income clients to include people who until recently would not have sought help, and leaders asked the committee to restore targeted savings and…