SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - Times have been tough, and many people are wondering where their next meal will come from.

With the holiday season in full swing, community leaders in Springfield said one of the best ways to give is by helping people receive one of the most basic necessities - food on their plate.

Beth Wakefield of the Central Illinois Food Bank said hunger affects hundreds of thousands of people in the region.

"Feeding America recently released food insecurity projections and for our service area, 120,000 people will experience food insecurity," Wakefield said. "In that number, it includes 42,000 children. That breaks down to one in eight persons."

Springfield Alderman Shawn Gregory said the need for food in the community is greater than ever before.

"A lot of times, we think the only people who are in need are homeless people," Gregory said. "It's every day, normal people, who go to work still but are struggling paycheck to paycheck."

Tiffany Mathis, CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Illinois, said right now, communities all across the country are struggling to meet a demand.

"I think because of COVID and people being worried about gathering, its also kind of discouraged some folks from doing large food drives," Mathis said.

According to Mathis, the Boys and Girls Club of Springfield recently hosted a food drive and gave away 200 turkeys and nearly 500 food boxes. 

"Folks got here at six in the morning, and we didn't even distribute food until 11:30 a.m.," Mathis said. "You have to think, for people to put in that amount of time to wait, says a lot."

Mathis said despite the large quantity of food, people still left empty-handed.

"It could (have) been another couple hundred folks," Mathis said. "The line was so long it met itself."

Springfield Southern Baptist Church also hosted a food drive. Interim pastor, Doug Marrow said the church was able to give away thousands of pounds of food to hundreds of community members.

"2020 has been a tough year for a lot of people. Our main objective is to simply encourage this community and let them know we love them," Marrow said. "We have many people talking to us all the time about situations ... how somebody's lost a job, and they don't know how they are going to make it."

Mathis said it's important to remember anyone can be struggling with food insecurity.

"It's new faces that are experiencing this need," Mathis said. "Businesses are shutting down, places are closing and people have still not found employment."

According to Mathis, this need is not just tied to a holiday celebration and exists 365 days a year.

"It's not just Thanksgiving. It's not just Christmas," Mathis said. "It's an everyday need that has to be met."