He looked out the window, anything to avoid thinking about the bill in his hand. How did things get this bad? They were doing so well for so long. Maybe they didn’t have money to put back for that vacation they’d always dreamed about, but they got by. Then his son fell at school and broke his arm and there were doctor bills and x-rays to pay for. Then the car broke down. And before he knew it, they were behind with no idea how they were going to pay rent or buy groceries, let alone think about Christmas.
Sadly this story is not an unusual one as people sit in the Good Samaritan Ministries office and apologize for having to ask for help.
Everyone has a story. And most want to share their reason for having to ask for help, as if feeling guilty that they have a need. There is the elderly veteran who has lived through the depression, survived a war and now, in his senior years, has to ask for help for the first time in his life. There is the older grandmother, living on a fixed income, who now has three grandkids to care for. There is the young single mother who is doing everything she knows to do, but somehow it’s just never enough. There’s the young father who has just been laid off from his job and doesn’t know how he’ll be able to provide for his family.
In November alone GSM has provided a supplement of food for more than 936 families, including 53 new families who have never had to ask for help before.
And it’s not just food. The Clothing Store has seen record numbers of people purchasing clothing as well. In October, 1,319 people shopped in the Clothing Store, a high for the year and with the holidays fast approaching, that number will increase.
During the month of December, GSM provides, in addition to their regular staples, a box filled with ingredients a family needs to prepare a traditional Christmas dinner. Staff and volunteers will begin filling the boxes after the Thanksgiving holiday and clients can begin picking them up December 1. Last year, just more than 1,000 families picked up Christmas boxes. This year, with the increases seen in every other part of this ministry, GSM anticipates providing Christmas boxes for 2,000 families. Office hours will extend one hour on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from December 1 through 23 to accommodate the influx of people through the doors. Our office hours on those days will be 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Wednesdays will still be 1 to 5 p.m.
“It’s always been our goal at Good Samaritan Ministries to serve as an extension of the local church to meet the basic physical and spiritual needs of Brown County residents,” said GSM Executive Director Angelia Bostick. “We do this by working shoulder to shoulder with churches, businesses, individuals and other helping agencies to provide the most comprehensive help for our clients as possible, by putting hands and feet to the faith we profess. It is our aim to offer a hand up, not a hand out – to be a resource when there is nowhere else to turn.”
And the need is great. Every month this year, there has been an increase in families needing help with groceries and with the holidays here. That number will only continue to rise.
“The numbers are more than we’ve seen in our 17-year history,” Bostick said. “But as the need has gone up so has the response from our community.”
While giving does tend to increase during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday months, businesses and individuals seem to be in tune to the increased need in a down economy. Bostick said that she’s noticed that when times are bad, more donations seem to come in.
“When everyone’s feeling the pressure, it’s easier to understand that people are hurting,” she said. “I hope everyone understands how blessed we are to live in a community that gives like this one does.”
By the end of November, Bostick anticipates that we will have seen well over 1,000 families just in our food pantry. That’s not counting those who need help with water, electric or prescriptions. And, as happens every year, the numbers will be even higher in December.
GSM is one of the largest charities of its kind in a 19-county area and serves Brown County residents year round.
