Helping Each Other

Wow!  I go away for a few days, and people have a really thought provoking discussion about morality--hooray and blessings! I will comment after Thanksgiving, when I've had a chance to read comments and formulate my thoughts.

Today I have something more mundane: two ways for Fort Lee residents to help other Fort Lee residents (and residents of other nearby towns in Bergen County).

1. Support parents:  Please tell anyone you know who has a child with special needs of a support meeting for parents on Sunday, December 4, from 2-4 p.m. at Good Shepherd. More info is available on the Patch calendar, but word of mouth is often the best publicity. The agenda is simple: create a place for Fort Lee parents to talk with each other, share resources and find encouragement.

2. Give food: In 2009, 10.4% of the residents of Fort Lee were living below the federal poverty level ($10,830/year for one person; $22,050/year for a family of four), compared to 6.6% in Bergen County and 9.4% in the state of New Jersey This is a lower rate than Edgewater, Cliffside Park or Palisades Park; a higher rate than Leonia or Ridgefield. 5% of the residents of Fort Lee were living at less than half of the poverty level—roughly $5,000 to $10,000 income per year. There are many more statistics available (I found U.S. Census Data on these two sites particularly helpful: data  http://www.city-data.com/poverty/poverty-Fort-Lee-New-Jersey.html and http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/34/34003.html).

These should be sufficient to suggest that many of our local neighbors are hungry.

Some may suggest that neighbors living under the poverty line should move someplace where the cost of living is less expensive. This 10% probably includes life-long residents of Fort Lee, more widows than widowers or single men, whose primary source of income is Social Security and who worked all their lives in jobs that didn’t provide pensions or health benefits. It may include some families with children whose parents have lost their job and have to choose between rent, medicine, or food. I’ve helped women over the years who have had to leave their home with their children because of abuse—the few resources they have are located in town. 10% of veterans of wars after September, 2001, are unemployed—I expect at least some of these veterans are residents of Fort Lee. 

Good Shepherd is collecting food, diapers and toiletries, which we bring to the Center for Food Action, for distribution to residents of Fort Lee and other towns in Bergen County. Anyone is welcome to contribute to this ongoing collection effort by bringing food to the church Monday – Friday between 9:30-1 or Sundays around 11-12. Or you can bring it directly to the Center for Food Action—their closest office is in Edgewater. There are many other reputable local organizations that help people struggling to make ends meet who would welcome donations. 

Take an example from the students and faculty in our schools, who recently raised money and collected food for hungry people. Let’s all look for ways to help our neighbors as we become aware of various needs in our community, not just at holiday time, but year-round.