you look at the ppl line, and it's like, color, career, humbling, really, you know.o know that that could be me. and today it is me. yesterday it wasn't, and hopefully tomorrow it won't be again. but today, that's me. i'm one of them. >> reporter: though st. james has been handing out food for close to two hours, people are still in vesta godwin clark runs social services in downtown newark, new jersey. private charity relies on donations and grants and only has 11 employees. >> in the first three months of the pandemic, we served over 30,000 people. our numbers have quadrupled since the pandemic. >> thank you. thank you so much. >> reporter: lisenee thinks by rationing their food, it will last them two weeks. >> look at all this spinach! you're going to get so eme, wow, some milk here. it's great. >> lord god, we continue to lift the city up. when the world shut down in march, my staff had not been paid. the people we serve, they're in a position far worse than we are. >> reporter: st. james is a full-service stopgap for many people who would otherwise fall through