Holiday spirit shows up at county’s food banks

The Ghost of Christmas Past — recent past — is visiting again in the form of unemployment-benefit extensions being passed over by Congress right before its holiday break.

This time the Senate recessed before addressing the matter. Who knows what next year will bring, but struggling families were hoping for answers now. Members of Congress were a little less concerned this year given headlines about how the economy is improving. It’s even improving here — Snohomish County’s unemployment rate has fallen a little and late mortgage payments aren’t quite so common. Good news, indeed.

Then again, take a look at the human services situation in our county. Until some generous donors came forward the other day, the Everett Food Bank was down to its final 10 turkeys. Imagining 10 frozen turkeys sitting in a lonely freezer is comical until you imagine the 11th, 12th, 13th family, and so on, getting a bag full of groceries for their special holiday dinner without a bird inside. Thanks go to donors such as the Tulalip Tribes, which chipped in a hefty $10,000 to Volunteers of America, the agency that serves 19 food banks across the county. Food banks are generally faring well now, with folks dropping off plenty of non-perishable food and cash to get their less-fortunate neighbors through the holidays.

But what happens after Dec. 25? A significant portion of our population will always be in need of extra help. A dip in the unemployment rate and other good news on the economic horizon won’t change that. Plenty of families around here will still be in need of those bags of food so they can afford to pay other bills, like their mortgages and heating bills. The lines outside food banks will still be significant — just as food bank directors reported before the holiday season — but our minds will have moved on to other things.

Giving a little or a lot more during the holidays is a great way to feel good about yourself and to help someone else at the same time. Giving year-round as part of a new lifestyle — say, a New Year’s resolution — is a great way to make a permanent impact on your community.