Check around your area to see what agencies are out there to help people. Some don't have income limits, some do but it never hurts too look.
Also...
Shop your store ads, cut coupons even if you have to buy the Sunday paper to get them, it's worth it. It's very rare that you don't use enough coupons to cover the cost of the newspaper. If your stores are close together another good way is to store hop. I have gone to Big Lots then Walmart and then the grocery store before. Big Lots will sometimes have stuff I use and it's cheaper than the other stores. If not, I ALWAYS go to Walmart first. We have a Walmart with the groceries but it's rare that I buy cold stuff there. What I do get though is all of my paper products (paper towels, toilet paper, paper plates, etc.) soaps of all kinds, bathroom stuff (shampoo, toothpaste etc) and most of my dry or canned foods. Pretty much everything I need that does not require refrigeration. For me there are two reasons for the nonrefrigeration list at Walmart. One.....I HATE their meat. I've bought meat there before but ONLY because I was in a hurry. Plus it's so much more expensive. Two...with the refrigerated stuff, between Walmart and my grocery store, the prices are comparable. And, if I get cold stuff at Walmart, it will sit in the car while I'm in the store....not good. Walmart's prices on all of the dry goods are just so much cheaper than the grocery store and they accept coupons. I don't think they double them like the grocery stores do but still....even with the doubling, sometimes stuff is STILL more expensive at the grocery store.
Another thing is to buy in bulk when you can. I bought a pork roast the other day...just happened to see it on sale. I got a HUGE roast that was normally almost $20 for just over $8. We're talking big enough to feed the entire family at Thanksgiving. I got it, took it home, cut it into more reasonable sized portions and froze it. I do the same thing with the family packs of hamburger, pork chops...whatever they do that with. This works for anything though. I found a huge pack of toilet paper on sale somewhere once. I think there were 24 or 36 rolls in the pack and it was a special for some really low price....the good kind too! LOL
Another thing you can do that really helps your grocery bill if you can swing the money upfront....get a side of beef. A full side of a decent sized cow can last close to a year depending on how it's cut and how many people are in the house. Of course though, like I said, you need to pay upfront and this is only good if you have the freezer space. But...it usually averages out to around $1.80 - $2.00 a pound depending. Not bad when you consider you're getting hamburger, roasts, steaks and other various cuts. We have a small meat shop here and they also offer packages. You can order "variety packs" that are so much beef, so much pork and so much chicken. They vary in size and content and can range anywhere from $50 and up. But, you get a good variety of meats and cuts and again, the total cost averages out to be much less than what you would pay for it all at the grocery store.
Next summer if you have the room and are able, plant a garden. Canning and freezing does take some investment (jars, lids, etc.) but if you get enough, that can keep you in veggies for a good long time. Or, buy things from the farmer's markets and can those too. Does your area have a co-op garden?
I know you were probably asking more about agencies or things like that but these kinds of things can really make a difference in your budget.
