A Story that Stuck
Several years ago I had the pleasure of hearing Susie Larson speak on raising grateful kids. She's the kind of speaker who makes you laugh and cry and think really hard about your own life. Susie said a lot of profound, funny, interesting, thought provoking things that night, but what has stuck with me and what often comes to mind is a story she told about her family's hardships that had befallen them after a series of illnesses and incidents out of their control when her kids were young.
Susie told about a trip to the grocery store during that time with her 3 young boys in tow. She said that on such an occasion after they had gotten into their car they prayed and prayer of thankfulness that this week they had food to eat and that they had choices of what they would eat at each meal.
This is not such a profound story. This is not so utterly remarkable. And yet this is the story that I often hear in my head and share with my kids. They were thankful they had choices of what to eat for dinner. This is such a simple thing that many of us will never even contemplate our meal choices, nor consider these choices a luxury.
Economic Crisis
The truth is that the face of need is changing. Many of our neighbors have experienced the devastation of foreclosure. Many of our friends and family have suffered from job loss due to our economic crisis, including my own family. These are people who work; these are people who contribute to their communities; these people are upstanding citizens, but due to economic hardships beyond their control, they have lost their jobs, their homes and much more along the way.
Loaves & Fishes
In our community there's a nonprofit organization called Loaves & Fishes who serves free healthy meals to anyone who is hungry and in need of a free meal, no questions asked. In the Twin Cities you can go to one of the 9 dining locations throughout the Twin Cities for an evening meal. {Days and times vary with each location, so check website for schedule.} You can find out more information about meal locations, ways to help, etc. at www.loavesandfishesmn.org.
Loaves & Fishes believes: "everyone is entitled to a meal with dignity. Respect for others and self is the only requisite at our sites." A need for a warm, nutritious meal transcends socioeconomic, cultural or ethnic backgrounds. Everyone can fall on hard times and everyone must eat to survive.
Basic Resources
If you are not in the Twin Cities, there are a number of other organizations in other locations that provide the same services as Loaves & Fishes, and some are even similarly named organizations. You can find these services by running a search "loaves and fishes program" + the name of the city. The phrase "loaves and fishes" seems to turn up a good number of free meal programs in many large cities across the country, which makes sense considering the origin of the term.
Another good resource for finding information about such programs is a church. Most churches keep lists of resources for those who are looking to meet their family's basic needs regardless of religious affiliation or complete lack thereof. Again, in the Twin Cities, the Basilica of St. Mary's St. Vincent de Paul organization is an excellent place to start if in need of basic resources.
The Scoop
If you are in need of free meal, there is no shame in that. Everyone needs to eat to live. You may be in a situation where you need one free meal to get you through the week and that's it; or you may need to frequent the Loaves & Fishes dining locations often for a month or two or maybe even a year. That's alright. If you are not in need of a free meal, perhaps you can help those who are by volunteering at a free meal dining site near you. Over and out....
Anna
You might also like:
When Insurance Fails: Resources for Free Vaccines
Giving from the Heart: Tips for Raising Thoughtful, Generous Kids
Did you hear her speak at a Wooddale women's event? I went for the first 10 minutes, then got a call from the babysitter that I had a sick kid. I was sooo bummed I missed it - I heard she was great!
Posted by: Cate | Tuesday, August 16, 2011 at 07:59 AM
Cate,
Yes, it was at Wooddale. Susie Larson is a great speaker! Sorry you missed it!
Thanks for reading!
Anna
Posted by: Anna | Tuesday, August 16, 2011 at 03:09 PM