“I don’t know what economic recovery people are talking about, because we’re seeing things get worse,” said Amy Ginsburg, executive director of Manna Food Center in Gaithersburg. “We will not turn anyone away, but I’m a little concerned about how we’re going to manage the increased need.”

Many of the food pantries and charities in the region told The Washington Post they expect November and December to be record months for the number of people seeking assistance. A year ago, many nonprofit leaders didn’t think it could get harder to meet the need.

“There was a sense that things couldn’t get any more desperate, and things seemed to stabilize for a while this summer, but there’s been another dramatic increase,” said Roxanne Rice, executive director of Food for Others in Fairfax.

The Fairfax-based agency also operates in Arlington County, distributing food to the needy. Rice said they served more than 2,000 people in September, up 34 percent from the year before. She’s predicting a significant increase before the year ends.

Last year, they gave out 700 Thanksgiving turkeys but are still waiting this year to get holiday food donations. The urgency, she said, might not be felt by donors but the need is strong.

The Loudoun County, Va. government provides holiday meals for Loudoun Interfaith Relief. Still, executive director Bonnie Inman isn’t sure they’ll be able to match a population of needy people growing by 1,000 mouths a month.

“In a normal year, we live for the holidays because giving goes up and we live off of that for the rest of the year,” Inman said. “We’re hoping that we’ll open the door one day and the food will be there.”

Ginsburg said staples are always needed, like peanut butter, rice and canned soups — not just holiday foods or only making donations around the holidays.

At least 800 people a month, and 500 at every breakfast and lunch offered, come to Northwest Washington’s So Others Might Eat, according to Richard Gerlach.

“We’re serving 43,000 more meals than a couple of years ago, and that’s a major strain on the food budget,” said Gerlach.

The financial struggles of churches and synagogues who give generously to So Others Might Eat are making the situation even tougher. Since those organizations aren’t able to give as much, So Others Might Eat is relying more on individual donors. But those aren’t always able to give as much as one organization could.

“People really understand now more than ever that this could happen to them,” he said.