The holiday season is quickly drawing to a close. Thanksgiving is a distant memory, Hanukkah is long gone, Christmas is less than a week away, and New Years is just around the corner. As we stop celebrating and moving into the bleaker depths of winter, American's sense of generosity starts to drop along with the temperature. It must be remembered that while donations made late November through the end of the calendar year are sincerely appreciated, the plight of the less fortunate is often only beginning its harshest season. With that in mind, we encourage all of our readers to support Philabundance, started as a food bank in 1984, but has developed into so much more. Indeed, it is a full scale charity that tries to patch holes in many different aspects of hunger relief.Philabundance runs a traditional full food bank/soup kitchen year round, but they also offer quite a few other services. Most interestingly, they run a culinary school where all the practice meals are given out to those in need. On Mother's Day weekend, a collection specifically aimed at the needs of mothers and infants is organized. Philadundance partners with a number of different grocery stores, mega-stores that carry food (like Target and Walmart), and local farms to collect items that are still edible, but must be discarded due to strict standards for sale. There are programs that are specifically geared towards senior citizens whose income does not allow them proper nutrition. Always ready to go are 30 pound emergency food boxes for those that need immediate assistance. Their Fresh for All program puts fresh fruits and vegetables in the hands of those for whom the rapidly escalating price of these essentials makes them unattainable.
Philadundance is truely thinking outside the box when it comes to food and nutrition and how to meets the growing and diverse needs of the city. By providing a variety of programs that address many facets of hunger, they are ensuring that those in need are receiving food that is targeted towards their specific needs. It is also important to remember that during the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday, Philabundance and other soup kitchen type charities can usually provide for their clients. However, these programs run year round and are understocked most of the time. It is important to remember that there are homeless/poverty stricken/mentally ill/elderly/children in need all the time.
We here at I Hope You're not Squeamish urge you to reconsider your New Year's resolutions. While there is certainly nothing wrong with the "lose twenty pounds" type promises, please also remember to include others when considering the upcoming year. All we ask is that you what you can. If you already contribute to charity, please try to dig deep and include a modest increase. For sure, 2010 was hard enough for those who found their incomes slashed, or were victims of other tragedies, but remember, if you are reading this, there are people in far worse positions. Consider also that your contribution to charity does not have to be strictly monetary; donations of time and talent are also sorely needed and would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, and we wish you the happiest and most magical of New Years.
Philabundance
Steve Martin's Holiday Wish
