NEW YORK (AP) — It started with a late October meeting between a lifestyle entrepreneur, a marketing professional, a restaurant owner and a social worker at a brewery in the Florida panhandle. Within hours, Pensacola Grocery Buddies was born.
The four women wanted to pair people facing uncertainty over Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program food benefits with charitably inclined folks offering to cover grocery costs and deliveries. In just two weeks, co-organizer Hale Morrissette said they've made over 300 matches and raised more than $10,000 for those they cannot connect.
“Everybody’s stepping up," said Morrissette, 35, the operations director at a local health nonprofit called ROOTS. "They know that this is not something that’s like a partisan type of issue. It’s about service and it’s about taking care of each other.”
Everyday people have improvised such stopgap efforts to support their communities through a historically long government shutdown that has deepened disruptions to federal services. Whether feeding hungry families or maintaining local museum tours, volunteers nationwide are strengthening social ties that they hope will continue making their neighbors whole in the face of persistent precarity.
At the Oklahoma City National Memorial, volunteers have filled in giving the grounds tours typically led by now-furloughed National Park Service rangers. The site honors the 168 people killed 30 years ago when a truck bomb detonated outside a federal building, the deadliest homegrown attack on U.S. soil.
Pat Hall, a 74-year-old state lobbyist and memorial trustee whose wife was there the day of the explosion, said he was “honored to step up” and “keep the flame alive.” His first tour group was a senior class that had traveled three hours by bus from their rural high school.
Hall said he wanted to ensure that the government shutdown didn’t stop visitors from learning “the Oklahoma standard," a term borne from the 1995 attack to promote a culture of caring throughout the state.
“The rest of our life was to give, not take,” Hall said he realized in the attack's aftermath. “My wife survived a bombing. I have to give back.”
“We have to lift each other up,” said fellow trustee Sara Sweet. “There’s many, many, many opportunities. Because the need is so great. No matter what sector or what aspect of our communities we’re looking at.”
Many have taken up that ethos — that the vast amount of need demands greater levels of service — after a yearslong backslide in the number of people who donate their time to nonprofits.
These benevolent individuals aren't out to replace the robust charitable food networks that have become increasingly utilized in periods of hardship over the last half-century. But they've identified new roles that they themselves can play — sometimes outside of traditional philanthropic outlets.
A recent college graduate in Charlotte, North Carolina, started her own local “Grocery Buddies” chapter, similar to the one in Florida, after reading an article about the trend. While Molly Kerrigan, 23, acknowledged that food pantries are a great option for pitching in, she noted the need is so great that they're currently “overrun.”
She also welcomed the opportunity to build lasting connections between community members who would've otherwise remained strangers.
“With all of the uncertainty during the government shutdown and everything, it's easy to feel like you don't have a sense of agency," she said, adding that this program “has represented something that you can do that's right in front of you.”
Anna Culbertson was compelled earlier this year by her own job loss. The former National Institute of Allergy and Infection Diseases program specialist was among the thousands laid off this spring at the nation's top health agencies. She then co-founded 27 UNIHTED, a National Institutes of Health alumni network providing peer support and career resources.
When the shutdown began, the network put together food drives for federal employees going without pay and created a spreadsheet with available assistance for furloughed workers. They’ve placed collection boxes outside of Panera Bread and Starbucks locations, as well as the well-attended “ No Kings” protest in Washington, D.C.
This sort of organizing is new for Culbertson. As a career civil servant, she said she'd always cared about helping others. But it wasn't until recent challenges — the mass layoffs and government shutdown — that she began educating herself on effective organizing.
While it's felt good to recognize the collective power of “regular people," she said it’s sad that “we’re at this place where this is needed.”
“We’re not professional organizers," Culbertson said. “For me and the NIH cohort, we’re scientists. We’re people who care and help a lot.”
That same reciprocal care has surfaced at Norte Vista High School in Riverside, California. The school is recognized for its culture of civic engagement. Students regularly prepare ready-to-eat meals for families in need. But the Trump administration’s push to withhold food assistance funding has kicked that service into overdrive.
Norte Vista High School Principal Jason Marquez said they are partnering with local businesses and grocery stores this Thanksgiving season on a door-to-door meal delivery service called “Thanksgiving Hands.”
Jaymee O'Rafferty, Norte Vista’s community schools site coordinator, said many of their families struggle with food insecurity and have been asking her for additional support. She's rallied the mothers' group to deliver meals and gift cards. Campus clubs are collecting canned foods. It was a student who came to her with the idea for “Thanksgiving Hands.”
As she sees it, her job right now is to put one question to as many people as possible: Can you come help us?
“Our students are the ones where if they have 10 cans in their pantry, they're gonna bring five to donate," O'Rafferty said. "They already know the need and they're willing to do what it takes to help.”
“We have resources and we have power in sharing those resources," she added. "If everybody is able to come together and share a little, it makes a huge difference.”
The community engagement isn't slowing down even as lawmakers approach a deal to reopen the government. In Pensacola, Morrissette still sees a gap that needs to be bridged.
Families had to stretch their grocery budgets well before the pause on SNAP benefits, she said, and the uncertainty created by those delayed payments has brought “new faces” to her nonprofit.
Pensacola Grocery Buddies continued to see its public Facebook page fill up this past weekend with gracious posts from beneficiaries sharing photos of their delivered goods — and direct messages from potential recipients asking when they will reopen applications for new support.
The group is hammering out the final details on a Nov. 15 “Neighbors' Night Out” fundraiser so they can meet more of the demand. As a DJ, Morrissette in charge of the music.
“We're gonna dance and we're gonna talk and we're gonna sing,” she said. “We need joy in this world that tells us we shouldn't have hope.”
Associated Press coverage of philanthropy and nonprofits receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. For all of AP’s philanthropy coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/philanthropy.
Volunteer Karen Robinson moves groceries durning an emergency food distribution at The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia's Mitzvah Food Program in Philadelphia, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Volunteer Angus Hsigh helps a military member during a Feeding San Diego food distribution for military families affected by the federal shutdown Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, in Oceanside, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Volunteers at the San Antonio Food Bank load bags of potatoes for a food distribution for SNAP recipients and other households affected by the federal shutdown, Thursday, Nov. 6, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
The United States' debt surpassed a record $40 trillion Wednesday, a staggering milestone as defense costs, social programs and interest on the burgeoning deficit make up an enormous share of federal spending.
The milestone figure was recorded just five months after the U.S. hit a record $39 trillion debt in March. It reached $38 trillion five months before that, in October.
Federal agents seized electronic devices from former Rep. Eric Swalwell and searched his Washington home as part of an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct by the ex-Democratic congressman from California, according to a person familiar with the matter. Swalwell announced his resignation from Congress in April following sexual assault and misconduct allegations, which he has denied.
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The $2 million donation from IndyCar and Fox Corp. will pay for scholarships at Indiana University and Purdue University through the first lady’s Fostering the Future program for youngsters in foster care.
The Indiana schools are the latest to join a network of more than two dozen colleges and universities nationwide that participate in her program, she said during an event in the White House Rose Garden to announce the gift. Adding, it gives foster care youth the opportunity to get a college education, launch a career and achieve financial independence.
“America’s greatest competitive advantage remains in its own people,” she said.
IndyCar is sponsoring Sunday’s Freedom 250 Grand Prix through the streets of downtown Washington in celebration of America’s 250th anniversary.
The U.S. Treasury has extended a general license that grants permission for certain transactions connected to the potential sale of the foreign assets of sanctioned Russian oil firm Lukoil.
The latest license, which has been renewed several times, expires Sept. 19.
Last October, the Trump administration announced “massive sanctions” against Russia’s oil industry that were aimed at moving Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table and bring an end to Moscow’s brutal war on Ukraine. Those sanctions included punishing measures on Lukoil.
The vice president said in an interview on a radio show on Thursday that he took his youngest son, Alec Neel Vance, who was born July 19, to meet Trump.
Vance, speaking on the Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show, said the president loves children and gave his son a challenge coin.
“The baby doesn’t understand that, but he will someday,” Vance said.
Vance said the meeting happened after he and his wife, Usha, had lunch with Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and country music star Luke Bryan, who is in town for a show.
The president has voiced strong support for AI and data centers, emphasizing their economic benefits and importance in the global AI race.
“If I were the mayor of a town or the governor of a state, and I had a chance to get a big plant in, an AI plant or a data center,” Trump said, “I would absolutely want it because the jobs are enormous and the money paid, the taxes paid, are just enormous.”
Candidates in competitive midterm elections, however, are far less accepting.
Data centers have become a contentious issue, with concerns about energy costs and environmental impact. In Ohio, Republican Jon Husted faces attacks over his support for data centers. In Nevada, Democrat Aaron Ford accused Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo of aligning with Trump on the issue.
The debate reflects broader tensions over technology and local impact.
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Trump is expected to appear on the radio show of his former fixer-turned-foe Michael Cohen.
The interview, which will be broadcast later Thursday, will be a dramatic public reunion with the man who once called Trump a “Cheeto-dusted cartoon villain” and testified against him both in court and before Congress.
Cohen served prison time for what he told a judge were his efforts to cover up Trump’s “dirty deeds.” He has since said he and the president have started to reconcile.
Cohen says Trump’s taped interview will air on his 77 WABC program Thursday evening and Sunday.
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The Trump administration is imposing new sanctions on Cuba targeting its mining and metals sectors and broadening restrictions on Americans’ transactions with government-owned or affiliated businesses. It also accused Havana of using cultural and educational exchanges to radicalize U.S. citizens.
The Treasury and State departments announced sanctions on Thursday against 10 state-owned mining, metals, and construction companies and the leadership of the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, or ICAP.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said ICAP is responsible for sponsoring a “subversive network” to “cultivate” Americans, most recently with educational and cultural exchanges around the 100th anniversary of Fidel Castro’s birth earlier this month.
The sanctions follow an operation at the Miami airport last weekend in which several American citizens returning to the U.S. from events marking Castro’s birthday in Cuba were briefly detained, some of whom had their cell phones and other personal electronic devices seized for inspection.
Federal agents have seized electronic devices from former Rep. Eric Swalwell and searched his Washington home as part of an investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct by the ex-Democratic congressman from California, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Swalwell’s devices were seized at the San Francisco airport on Saturday, and federal agents searched his home a day later.
A message seeking comment was left Thursday with an attorney for Swalwell.
Swalwell announced his resignation from Congress in April following sexual assault and misconduct allegations, which he has denied. The AP source wasn’t authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said during a CNBC interview on Thursday that an accelerated buyback of government debt “could be more than $4 billion per issue.”
His comments followed the Treasury’s Wednesday announcement that it would dramatically expand the amount of U.S. government bonds it will buy back. When asked about the motivation for the move, Bessent said: “We’re trying to signal that this is a thinly traded area of the market, we’re in August and there’s been a lot of corporate issuances.”
“We’re trying to keep the market in equilibrium.”
The first lady is partnering with IndyCar, the sanctioning body for U.S. auto racing, and Indiana and Purdue universities to fund the scholarships, her office says.
Both Indiana-based schools are joining about two dozen other institutions of higher learning to offer scholarships through Melania Trump’s “Fostering the Future” initiative benefiting young people in foster care.
A formal announcement is set for Thursday afternoon in the White House Rose Garden. The first lady will be joined by her husband and representatives from IndyCar and the universities.
The announcement comes just before Sunday’s Freedom 250 Grand Prix race in downtown Washington, which was organized by the president to help celebrate America’s 250th birthday.
The State Department said Thursday that it had given the green light for Qatar, a key U.S. partner in the Gulf, to buy four KC-46A aircraft along with assorted equipment, including turbofan engines, radar warning devices and countermeasure systems. The sale will also include trucks, training and assorted logistics services.
The sale “will increase Qatar’s capability to meet current and future threats by enhancing its defense capabilities and interoperability with U.S. and allied forces and reinforcing Qatar’s strategic role in regional security,” the department said.
Qatar, which hosts a major U.S. military base, has been a critical part of the war with Iran, including by trying to mediate an end to the conflict.
The launches come a day after North Korea shrugged off a U.S. decision to scale back military drills with South Korea in an apparent bid to resume diplomacy.
South Korea’s military said the launches of about 10 short-range ballistic missiles happened from North Korea’s capital region Thursday evening. The military said the missiles flew about 300 kilometers each toward North Korea’s eastern waters.
Trump ordered the Pentagon to “substantially reduce” the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises just before they began Monday. The president cited what he said was a good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korea’s refusal to support him over the war in Iran.
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Braid was in charge of helping to shepherd Trump’s legislative agenda through a Congress where his Republican Party controlled both chambers.
Vice President JD Vance wrote on X that Braid “played a critical role in all of the administration’s achievements in Congress,” including the sweeping tax and spending legislation approved last summer.
Vance described Braid as “brilliant” and “one of the hardest workers you will ever meet.”
The vice president didn’t provide details of Braid’s next job, saying only that he was “very excited to see what he does next.”
The Asia-based USS George Washington aircraft carrier is now operating in the Middle East, the U.S. military said Thursday.
The Washington is relieving the long-deployed USS Abraham Lincoln after reports that sailors were facing mental health challenges and supply shortages while supporting the Iran war.
The Lincoln’s deployment has included a record-setting uninterrupted time at sea. Democratic lawmakers are pressing for accountability from the Pentagon over conditions aboard the carrier, which Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said were “completely misrepresented.”
The deployment of the Washington to the Middle East has left Asia without an American carrier strike group at a time when China shows more signs of aggression.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has designated a U.S. citizen scholar jailed in China as “wrongfully detained” as Trump prepares to welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping to the White House next month.
The State Department said Thursday that Rubio had decided that Min Zin, who was arrested by Chinese authorities in June, is being unjustly held.
“We call on Beijing to release all U.S. citizens arbitrarily detained or exit-banned in China,” the department said.
The designation raises the profile of his case within the U.S. government and in the past has led to additional attention and resources being devoted to securing the release of wrongful detainees.
Min Zin, who writes about Myanmar and Chinese foreign policy, was arrested on suspicion of spying. He was a student activist in Myanmar’s 1988 uprising, a student-led movement that the government at the time reacted to with military force. He eventually sought asylum in the U.S.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee said the expansion showcases the depth of its candidate bench as they try to wrest majority control of the House.
Chair Suzan DelBene said the candidates are “proven fighters” at a time when voters are “eager for leaders who will always put the well-being of their communities first, not rubber stamp Trump’s failed agenda.”
The candidates include retired Army Brigadier General Leela Gray in Florida, former federal prosecutor Zach Dembo in Kentucky, Maine state auditor Matt Dunlap, former Navy helicopter pilot Nancy Lacore in South Carolina and former Rep. Tom Perriello in Virginia. The “red to blue” program invests in promising candidates with funding and other support.
Democrats on Thursday narrowed the list of potential host cities for their 2028 presidential convention to Boston, Denver and Philadelphia as their party looks ahead to a wide-open primary to succeed President Trump.
Democratic National Committee Chairman Ken Martin said in a statement the cities put forward “incredibly strong bids,” and he promised the convention would be an “inspiring celebration of our party’s future nominee.”
A final decision is expected to be made later this year by party leaders. Republicans have already chosen Houston for the site of their 2028 convention.
The Democratic convention, scheduled for Aug. 7-10, 2028, traditionally gives the party a chance to formally introduce its nominee to the country, rally the base and kick-start the most intense period of campaigning ahead of the general election.
The party didn’t specify why Atlanta and Chicago, which was the site of the 2024 convention, were eliminated. Officials visited all five cities in April and May, considering logistical and fundraising capacity among other factors.
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Trump played White House tour guide on Wednesday, showing off the helipad he is building on the lawn before leaning over to autograph a piece of it and bragging about the ballroom he’s rushing to complete despite legal challenges.
Trump gushed for several uninterrupted minutes about granite being laid and said the chopper landing area would leave visiting foreign leaders “very impressed” — including Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is coming next month.
At times, he sounded almost like a construction manager, singing the praises of granite over asphalt in painstaking detail and noting for reporters he brought out for the show that the stone could withstand 35,000 pounds per square inch of pressure.
The president also revealed for the first time that he has replaced the walkway from the White House’s diplomatic entrance along with a portion of the asphalt driveway around the South Lawn with white granite.
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The national debt surpassed a record $40 trillion Wednesday, a staggering milestone as defense costs, social programs like Social Security and Medicare and interest on the burgeoning deficit make up an enormous share of federal spending.
The milestone figure was recorded just five months after the U.S. hit a record $39 trillion debt in March. It reached $38 trillion five months before that, in October.
The unprecedented $40 trillion figure highlights competing administration priorities, from boosting defense spending that the U.S. relies on to carry out President Donald Trump’s almost 6-month-old war in Iran to lowering the cost of gas and groceries.
Kush Desai, a White House spokesman, said the Trump administration “has been focused on slashing waste, fraud, and abuse in federal spending while accelerating economic growth to get America’s debt-to-GDP ratio trending in the right direction.”
However, experts say the exploding debt and the latest record milestone are already affecting Americans’ pocketbooks by raising borrowing costs for things like mortgages and cars, lowering wages from businesses that have less money available to invest, and creating more expensive goods and services.
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President Donald Trump listens as Gemini co-founder and president Cameron Winklevoss, left, and Gemini co-founder and CEO Tyler Winklevoss, right, watch, during a meeting with technology leaders in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
President Donald Trump speaks outside the White House, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026, in Washington, at the construction site of the new helicopter landing zone on the South Lawn of the White House. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with technology leaders in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Wednesday, Aug. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
