Severe food deprivation may be uncommon in the U.S., however, lesser degrees of food insecurity can and do exist with certain groups being particularly vulnerable. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the prevalence of food insecurity among elderly residents in Walker County, Texas. One-hundred-eight men and women were interviewed from several elderly organizations and local mission feeding programs within the county. The U.S. Household Food-Security/Hunger Survey, developed by the United States Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, was administered. Data were analyzed using SPSS 14.0. Participants' ages ranged from 60 to greater than 90 years. Only 15% (n=16) of the participants reported still being married while 47% (n=51) were widowed. Sixty-five percent (n=70) reported living alone. The yearly income level most often reported (n=34; 32%) was between $7,001 and $9,000. Twenty-four percent (n=26) reported an income of less than $7,000 per year. Fifty percent (n=54) of the participants received food stamps while 44% (n=48) received some form of community assistance. Forty-four percent reported sometimes to often not having enough to eat. The most frequently cited reason for this was not enough money (46%; n=50). Not being able to get to the store (24%; n=26) and being on a special diet (31%; n=33) were also cited as reasons for not having enough to eat. Ten percent (n=11) of the participants reported poor health as a reason for not having enough food to eat. Sixty-nine percent (n=75) of the participants reported worrying about their food supply running out before they would receive more money. Seventy percent (n=76) reported actually running out of food and not having money to purchase more. Sixty-seven percent (n=72) could not afford to purchase foods for balanced meals. Fifty percent (n= 54) reported cutting the size of or skipping meals because there wasn't enough money for food. Forty-five percent (n=49) of the participants experienced hunger because of not enough money for food. Thirty-two percent (n=34) reported loosing weight because they did not have enough money for food. These results demonstrated that many of the respondents were food insecure, especially those within the lower levels of income. This food insecurity persisted even in those participants receiving assistance from organizations. These results would indicate that current efforts by community and governmental assistance programs have failed to totally alleviate the problem of providing the elderly with adequate monies for a balanced and secure food program.Keyword(s): aging/older adult issues, disease prevention/wellness, nutrition