HOLYOKR, Mass. (WWLP) - The season of giving is here and the United Way of Pioneer Valley collected food donations for families in need. This is all part of an effort to crack down on food insecurity in Western Massachusetts. According to Program Director with United Way of Pioneer Valley, Lee Drewitz, every week the organization sees up to 600 families in need every week. Drewitz said that there has been a 20 percent increase of people in need. "Prices have increased dramatically and for the low- income earners and those on a fixed income that has hit them dramatically hard. Over the past few years the need at these food pantries where we can get food and give it out for free just makes a tremendous impact for families and for communities," he said. According to the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, more than 98,000 residents are food insecure in Western Massachusetts with most of them being right here in Hampden County. Through this stuff the truck event, the organization collected some essential items that are often missing from the weekly food deliveries from the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts.Some of those items include breakfast mixes, cereal, breakfast bars, cooking oil and food seasonings, all which are vital to prepare nutritious meals for families. "It does make a huge impact on people when they can get nutritious food because if you think about the needs people have if they can't feed their bodies with real food then how are they going to get up and find the energy to go out and live their lives," said Drewitz. The United Way of Pioneer Valley's goal is to be able to provide $3 dollars worth of food to the community for every $1 spent on program operations.