NYC, NY "Ham For The Holidays Food Drive Idea.

Not to beat a dead horse, but after sleeping through NBC's The Poseidon Adventure the news showed local food pantries in SI, NYC and the area the shelves are empty. One in Staten Island is down to one bag of rice and two cans of corn. Over 1000 families will miss out on Thanksgiving dinner this week and it will only get worse at Christmas time. Media coverage has not improved the situation. Those that will suffer most will be children who already have a meager holiday to look forward to as it is.


I am proposing this idea.

The Star Wars Communities "Ham for the Holidays" drive. It's real simple. We designate Saturday, December 1oth as a shopping day. Until then we collect donations from ourselves and our members. Sat, we go to a supermarket and buy the items food pantries most need.

I know money is tight for everyone, but I think we can all at the very least can contribute 10 dollars each. If anyone wants to contribute, they can paypal the money to ID fettsgal@aol.com. They can also mail it check, money order or cash to Christina Romo PO Box 143 Fairview NJ 07022. If you want, you can join us on shopping day and contribute then. You don't HAVE to give 10.00, but that seems to be a very manageable amount for most. Please, if you can do more, do more. I promise every penny will go to feed hungry families For the December holidays.

I Invite all other area groups to take this idea and put it into action among themselves. Maybe the local ones here could even get togeter on shopping day and make it a social as well as a fun charity event! Thank you for taking the time to read this And have a Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Definitely paypal'ing you some money when I get home tonight.

 

Yay! I'm glad we're doing something after all. The guilt was starting to eat at me.

I actually have a ton of non-perishable food from countless old care packages from Mom. Bless her heart, but there's only so far I can go before getting tired of dehydrated beans and mashed potatoes. I can spare a bunch. I've also got lots of bagged rice and pasta.

I can just give you my donation in person the next time I see you, Chris.

(Hunger isn't just something on TV for me--my own mother is currently living on a trickle of bottled water and three lemons until her next paycheck. She'll go for a week without food and then get sick when she finally eats something. Now that I'm earning some real money, I'll be helping her out for the holidays too.)

 

Charity definitely begins at home.

I saw a man was in pathmark tonight with his wife and young son. I could not help but notice them. He was clearly a working man in some blue collar field. They, like me were shopping for their TG meal with one big difference. They were buying no frills brands and the smallest turkey I have ever seen. I kept running into them and watching as their kid picked up one item after the other that he would have liked only to have one of his parents sadly tell him no. These were not toys, just the nicer things like brand name cookies and a pie. At checkout I noticed they had chosen a package of Pathmark brand cookies. the child was clutching them so happy to have found something they could afford he wanted. It reminded me again who poverty really strikes hardest.

On a happy note, just hours after posting this idea we have little over 200 dollars to shop with. Way to go guys! You are the best!

 

Growing up my father worked in a cabinet factory. The job was seasonal. He'd get laid off at the beginning of winter every year and would usually be out of work until around Easter. He'd be on unemployment during that time but we all know that's never enough. My mother used to do piece work in sweatshop factories. You can imagine what that paid.

To help save money during the year my mother would make bread. I never really brought friends home, but when they did come they thought my mother made bread because it was nicer to bake at home, but what they didn't know was that we could buy a 50 pound sack of flour for about the price of 10 loaves of bread. It was a way to save money. We never went completely without at the holidays. what my mother couldn't afford to buy she would make or bake. We still had a few toys, but nothing in the amounts the other kids got, but you never missed what you never had. Eventually my parents eventually landed better paying and more permanent jobs. They eventually paid their thirty year mortgage and began the process all over again so they can buy another house that would make them more money. Holidays are different now than they were before, but I know where these people come from.

 

I grew up in very poor. In a drafty house, with parents just making ends meet with hand me downs, and never got the "good name brand" food.

I just donated a bunch of food i dont eat (atleast 30-40 dollars worth) this weekend to the girl scouts that were collecting to the shelters out here. I know what its like.