NEWBURYPORT — A woman sat in the parking lot of Our Neighbors' Table this week for hours before gaining the courage to walk inside the food pantry and seek help with providing food for her family.
For someone who had always worked and managed to provide food for her family's dinner table, the short walk to the pantry's front door was a humbling, difficult journey, Our Neighbors' Table director Rosemary Werner said. That's the kind of struggle Werner is seeing more and more this holiday season, as a number of out-of-work families find themselves running out of money and options.
"I have had people say they've never had to go to a food pantry in their life, and they were embarrassed," Werner said.
For many struggling this year, having to accept help from a stranger is one of the most difficult things they'll ever do, Werner said. And because hard times seem harder around the holidays, there has never been a time when the kindness of a stranger was more needed.
If ever you've thought to become a bell ringer for The Salvation Army, donate food or old clothing to Community Action in Amesbury, or sponsor a family so their children have gifts to open on Christmas Day, relief organizations in the area agree: now is the time. And while Christmas hams and donations of food and money are always appreciated, Werner reminds community members to look around them to identify need, as well.
"This is something that I always tell people, that if you can reach out to somebody you know, on your street or in your neighborhood, or if someone lives alone, check in on them," Werner said. "Ask them in for a holiday meal, or be wiling to drive them to a place that serves food. If they need a food bank, help them get in touch with some place that can help them."
Even if you don't see the need around you, there is consensus among relief organizations across the state and country that the numbers of those seeking assistance are growing faster than many of those organizations can keep up with.
That's certainly the case with Community Action in Amesbury, which helps provide emergency shelter, clothing, and heating and rent assistance for struggling families from Newburyport, Amesbury and Salisbury.
"We're inundated with people needing help," said Community Action manager Dianne Halloran, who noted the number of families they serve has risen to almost double the number of people they served last year, and their Homeless Aid Fund ran dry two months ago from the increased need.
"The needs are just much greater," added Community Action director Elaine Miller. "Our volume in terms of the pantry has increased from 300 to 500 families per month over the same time last year. It's huge."
On Miller's wish list for this holiday season is generous donations from the community to help replenish that Homeless Aid Fund, which could make a big difference for struggling families when it comes to heating homes and keeping a roof over their head this winter.
"They have utility bills, kids in school, and some folks that rent may have a landlord who isn't paying the mortgage because they've fallen behind," she said.
Halloran said clothing is in high demand as well, especially men's clothing, which doesn't typically get donated as frequently as children's and women's items.
"Food is also necessary," Halloran said. "We're always looking for vegetables, ground turkey, ground chicken and cereal. We haven't had cereal for over a month. The food is something that's kind of stark right now."
If you have some time and money that you can spare or carve out of your budget for someone else this holiday, there are a number of other places that would appreciate the help as well.
Just as Our Neighbors' Table and Community Action have seen rises in the number of people seeking help this year, so have local organizations like Newburyport's Jeanne Geiger Crisis Center, which provides support for victims of domestic violence and is heading up a family sponsorship program through area businesses this year.
The 24-year-old Holiday Program in Amesbury, which provides for local families with children under the age of 18 in need of assistance, and the Salvation Army in Newburyport are two other agencies in need of help this time of year, whether it's the donation of money or one's time.
Whatever you can do for someone else will go a long way for those who are down on their luck , Werner said.
"We can't do it without the generosity of the people in this community that enables us to do it," said Werner of the pantry. "I always think we're all lucky when we can do something and pass it on. That is what we should do."
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