Though the latest unemployment numbers suggest the recession may be slowing in Utah, families continue to flock to food stamps and pantries to keep their stomachs full.

As of last month, food stamp use in Utah was - once again - at a record high. Between March and April, caseloads rose 5 percent, to 78,716 households. And food pantries, where people can obtain a variety of free items to feed their family in a crisis, continue to see high numbers.

"I don't think we're going to see a slowdown any time soon," said Glenn Bailey, executive director of Crossroads Urban Center, which provides emergency food and other help to struggling Utahns. "I suspect all our services will set new record highs this year."

The number of households seeking help at their Salt Lake City pantry during the first four months of 2009 was 30 percent higher than the same period last year.

At Salt Lake Community Action Program food pantries throughout the region, officials have suspended rules that previously restricted most families from visiting more than six times a year. The demand was too great.

Many clients have been embarrassed to come in so frequently, said Sally Sweat, who runs the Salt Lake CAP food pantry in Murray.

"It's very hard for them to walk through our doors," she said. "They want jobs and the jobs aren't out there."

Sweat encourages anyone with a garden to consider donating their excess fruits and vegetables. Despite a newly organized effort to get fresh produce to food pantries, more is always needed.

Not only are Utahns still hungry, the need for volunteers remains high. At The Good Samaritan program, which provides sack lunches to the needy 365 days of the year, people are desperately needed to staff the door where food is distributed. A true cross-section of the Salt Lake Valley arrives at the old convent door near the Cathedral of the Madeleine. Its clients include homeless war veterans and teenagers, the mentally ill and the families who just can't quite pay all their bills. A father might stop in before the night shift to pick up his mid-shift meal.

"[We see] people who can afford the rent but can't afford lunch," said Laurel Dokos, the Cathedral's development director.

She estimated their numbers have risen about 15 to 20 percent from two years ago.

Without enough volunteers to act as "door hosts," sometimes the program has to temporarily shut down. All faiths are welcome to participate, Dokos said.

When the economic recovery does occur, Bailey at Crossroads predicts the poor will benefit last.

"In our business, we see it first and we come out of it last," he said. "We're helping the folks who are left out."

jlyon@sltrib.com