American conservatism renounces the structural inequalities that lead to widespread poverty and instead proclaims that welfare recipients depend on the state due to poor personal decisions that land them in a state of poverty. Literature on hunger assistance services shows that this prevailing view of poverty and hunger as an individual issue has created a stigma and sense of shame around participating in hunger assistance services. However, current studies on hunger acknowledge that widespread food insecurity is a symptom of larger structural inequalities and explore how to incorporate empowerment theory into hunger assistance services. Limited research exists on the capacity to empower participants through hunger assistance services, especially alternative food security programs, such as community gardens, community kitchens, and food rescue programs. Scholars in this field call for more research that evaluates existing hunger assistance programs through the lens of empowerment theory. I address this gap in the literature through a community-based, qualitative study that explores the capacity of one alternative food security program to empower participants. I suggest here that alternative hunger assistance services have the capacity to empower individuals and communities through a participatory structure, the facilitation of social capital, and the reframing of hunger and poverty as social justice issues rather than individual problems.