SMITHFIELD - Demand is high and supplies are low, say leaders of the Smithfield Area Ministries food closet. The pantry, which gives emergency food to the needy, isn't in dire straits yet, but its stock of canned food is dwindling.

The number of people coming for free food has tripled, even quadrupled, during the recession, said Sarah Sellers, an 81-year-old coordinator for the charity. Donations are up too, but the closet needs more money to keep up, she said.

This time of year, some food charities are stretched thin because schools don't usually donate until December, she said.

Volunteers run the Smithfield food closet, which gives food only to people who get vouchers from other groups. Clients are discouraged from coming often.

"It's people who suddenly lose their jobs, who do not have food stamps yet, someone passing through town trying to get from one place to another," said Dee Howell, who schedules work shifts for the pantry.

Atkinson's Mill donates corn meal, and Pepperidge Farms gives bread; otherwise, the group buys bulk canned goods and nonperishables from IGA. Lately, the menu has included lots of canned corn, tomatoes, macaroni and cheese and red mackerel. The mackerel is a bit of a step down from some of the usual meat, said Betsy Stancil, a frequent volunteer.

Stancil doesn't just hand out the food -- she calls herself a "suggester." When a man came in, troubled because he had lost his painting job and his wife had left him, Stancil helped him search for the good in his life.

When a jobless nurse came in, Stancil pointed her toward a possible job opening at the county's health department.

To volunteer or donate to a local food closet, call Dee Howell at 919-934-2218.