Gabriel, This is very timely as we just returned from working a shift at our food bank which is affiliated with the national America's Second Harvest. I joined in 1998, and can say that I've never see such a depletion in supplies this early in the season.

Thanks for your words encouraging everyone to chip in to help with hunger relief.

Cathy

Gabriel,

I agree with Cathy. It's very timely. DH & I worked at our local Food Bank on Thanksgiving delivering meals to people unable to physically attend the dinner. We also picked up two women without transportation, kept them company while they ate their meal, & saw them safely home.

Our entire holiday budget has been donated to our Food Bank this year (I've made several posts here on the Forum about the severe need). I'm pleased to report that our community really pulled together this year & we were able to feed everybody wanting/needing a meal Thursday. We actually had enough food to send everybody home with doggie bags including pie.

We need to keep giving throughout the year though...not just during the holiday season. People need food every day & our Food Bank is experiencing record requests. We'll start assembly on Christmas food baskets next week.

/tricia

I agree this is a real priority this year. We made a donation at the start of Nov. and will make another one this month. I'm telling family that this is what we are doing so there will be less gift giving.

Many of the clients at the food bank where DH and I volunteer live in old hotel or motel rooms rented by the week or month. No kitchen, no stove, occasionally a small microwave but usually a one or two burner hot plate for cooking.

No spice rack, electric mixer, food processor, or most of the other appliances, cutlery, cookware, and condiments we use on a daily basis. Imagine that your kitchen consists of one burner, one pot, one frying pan, a couple of bowls and plates, a paring knife, a spatula and a big spoon to prepare all your meals.

If you think about it in that perspective, donations that can be heated up or cooked in one pot are the most desirable - chunky soups or chili, canned vegetables or fruits. Hamburger or tuna helper of boxed mac and cheese are good choices because they can be cooked in one pan and that can of tuna can be added to it for protein.

That's why many food banks may not seem as appreciative of a box of cake mix as they are of a can of SPAM. It's not always a case of the recipient not knowing how to cook certain items but rather living in a physical setting where it's just not possible.

Please keep this in mind when you are purchasing items to donate to your local food banks. Thanks.

At DGS' high school, his family living class always goes out on a 'scavenger hunt' before Thanksgiving. And several of the other classes, the teachers will actually give extra credit to kids who bring stuff.

I buy extra cans of tuna and extra 18-oz plastic jars of peanut butter. It doesn't cost me a lot to donate, and both are high-quality protein and can be eaten right out of the container, if need be. While it's true that these items aren't the usual Thanksgiving fare, there are several organizations that provide a free Thanksgiving meal. Thanksgiving is just one meal out of many.

Another thing to think about is that if you have fruit trees in your yard and you do not put up the fruit, there may be places in your community that make a noon meal for people who would otherwise not eat, that would be most grateful for that fruit.

Another thing that I would like to say is that some people go to those free dinners who can well afford to provide their own meal, or pay for one. So if anyone reading this is one of those people, please consider that you might be denying a meal to someone who hasn't eaten in several days.

Deborah, what a wise and kind young man you have there. You can be very proud of him.

Two local churches sponor food drives. One leaves you a paper bag the week before Halloween and does a trick or treat for foood items, the other just nocks and asks right before T-Day. Both have told me they are seeing less in the bags.

If your own wallet is tight, check your pantry for those "what was I thinking" items that are sitting there.

And remember, many of the recipeints also have pets, so toss in some dog and cat foods too!

I for one had not thought about people living with only a hot plate, so will take that into consideration.
And had never thought to provide pet food...what a terrific idea!!!!

We are doing something different this year. When I went in to pay my propane bill last week they had a small Christmas tree decorated with cards with names on them .The names were people who were having a hard time paying for their heating bill. ItÂs nothing real organized the girls in the office put it together. So I am paying half the bill for a woman about my age that lost her husband a few months ago. When he died she lost his pension and now only has social security. If I can help her stay in her house for the winter and give her time to figure out what to do I really feel like I helped someone.

Claudia

Claudia that is a really great thing. Those girls are doing a lovely thing as long as the people know their name is on the tree. I would bet that some people would need and like the help but prefer to be anonymous. Or maybe they are using "pen names" for some of the people.

I rarely give food donations, I give cash instead since I figure the food banks know the greatest need. But sometimes groups ask for food and then give a discount. I give tuna, peanut butter, nice jam, and things like jars of boullion. I figure many of these people not only don't have real kitchens but also have health problems that make cooking difficult.

I teach food/nutrition/cooking classes at our local Food Bank and I can say the struggle is real for many people. More often than not, the children are doing the food preparation and will attend the classes with a parent.

If you have some good used kitchen towels or you have a penchant for knitting dish rags like I do, donate them to the Food Bank as well. You'd be surprised how many of those they give away as well. Any pans, foil pans, etc. will also be readily distributed.

I've noticed at different times of the year it goes from mostly drug-abusers to families that are just down-on-their-luck, and the Food Bank helps EVERYONE. We've had a lot of layoffs in town, so the latter is now the larger user of the Food Bank right now.

As pointed out by others, people may have little more than a hot plate and a couple pans and maybe a small microwave for food preperation. So when you hear the story of the people who were given a turkey in a care basket and they fed it to their dog - they probably didn't have the way and means (or knowledge) necessary to cook the turkey.

I buy up aluminum foil roasters when they go on sale at the end of the holidays, as well as boxes of Oven Bags, and give them to the Salvation Army to use in their food baskets because we know they give away turkeys or hams. They give these to people who need something to bake the turkey/ham in. We also include recipes and information how to make the food in the care baskets, both at the Salvation Army and the Food Bank.

At our Food Bank we got LOTS of dried beans donated, but many people don't know how to prepare them, don't have the equipment to cook them, or just don't eat them. Time and time again folks will take the dried beans out of their bags and give them back to the Food Bank for one reason or another, so we worked on this problem for quite awhile.

We solved this problem by purchasing a Nutri Mill for the Food Bank. I mill bean flour and use it all the time, so I showed the Food Bank how to make bean flour like I did. They can now mill pinto beans and black beans into bean flour. With the bean flour people can mix it with water and boil it for a few minutes (stove top or microwave) to make "instant" refried beans. The Food Bank will also mill a bag of pinto beans for people who have learned how to use the bean flour.

When folks have tortillas (which they can get inexpensively) and can make the bean flour into "instant" refried beans, they have a "meal" that is a complete protein, filling, and easy to fix. I teach the bean flour class over and over....

-Grainlady

My 7th grade religious education class assisted the 1st grade class with collecting food items last Sunday. All the classes were asked to bring items and the 1st and 7th graders would collect from each class. The other parent teaching has really stressed to the kids about giving of yourselves, your time, your talent and giving to those who are having difficulties. We didn't get a lot of time to "advertise" but yet the classes came through and we collected over 700 items. Paper towels, foil, toilet paper, were also brought in. We promised our class breakfast this week for being the top class. They also collected money for a church family with a little girl who became ill. I think if we teach our kids to share and they feel that they are really contributing and feel good about themselves, they'll continue this good work.

I hope people remember the less fortunate this year. That one or two extra food items in your grocery cart can make a difference.

granjan.....

I only know her first name and that she lives here in the valley. ItÂs anonymous on both sides she will never know who we are either.

Claudia

I would be hesitant to give pet food. Mainly because there's so much in the news about people, especially the elderly, eating pet food themselves. I would be afraid, if I gave some, that the persons who put together the bags would leave them out for fear the recipient would misunderstand.

When I was a kid we lived in a little town right on a busy highway and people were always dumping their cats in front of our house. We never bought pet food. They caught mice and we would give them scraps from our table. Now, dogs, I guess that would be another matter.

I heard that the animal shelters were getting pets turned in to them right and left from people who couldn't afford to keep them.

That might be something good to do, as well, to temporarily adopt someone's pet until the owner could get back on their feet. They'd know where their pet was and could visit, and there wouldn't be any danger that it would get euthanized. In hard times, giving up your much-loved pet is just another heartbreak. I don't know what I'd do if I had to do that. My dog came from a shelter and I think going back there would be misery for him. My cat is old and is afraid of other cats. They'd probably euthanize her right away. --Ilene

What a good reminder, Gabriel. We always donate food, as this is something that so obviously helps people in need. Yes, our local food banks have been depleted as well, because it seems like the need is so great this year. We used to write a check to Harvesters, but quit when they kept asking us relentlessly for money. I'd rather give them food instead, and have no trouble buying extra groceries to drop in the bin or leave at a drop-off.

For those who might like to donate pet food, the local shelters will always appreciate anything you can give, whether it's cleaning supplies, bedding, food or toys.