The holiday season is a time for giving.
But for many in the Eugene community, giving is not an option, because they are concerned with finding food and shelter for their own families as the winter months bear down.
In times of struggle, people look to their community for strength. Programs like FOOD for Lane County@@yeah, the FOOD is in all caps. http://www.foodforlanecounty.org/en/@@ are being utilized at a higher rate than ever before, and for many, these programs are all they have to support themselves and their families.
FFLC@@I couldn’t find anywhere that used this acronym but when I googled FFLC, food for lane county came up first@@ works endlessly to help those in need. Last year alone they provided 7.5 million pounds of food across more than 125 programs in the area designed to assist those who require help.@@http://www.foodforlanecounty.org/en/about_us/faqs/@@
Yet in these times of great need as the holiday season approaches, FFLC is seeing its supply dwindle down to a dangerous level.
Dawn Marie Woodward, spokesperson for FOOD for Lane County, said, “I have hardly ever seen our storage facility as empty as it is right now.”
Programs like FFLC rely on their communities in the form of donations of both food and time. Last year it was estimated that over 66,000 hours of service were donated to FFLC by volunteers — @@http://www.facebook.com/foodforlanecounty?sk=info@@ like Dave Braithwaite.@@http://directory.uoregon.edu/telecom/directory.jsp?p=findpeople%2Ffind_results&m=student&d=person&b=name&s=Braithwaite@@
Braithwaite, a junior at the University of Oregon, has volunteered with FFLC regularly for the past year through the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity as well as through his various classes at the University.
“I like to see what direct impact people can have in the community and how our efforts can make a difference for people,” Braithwaite said.
Students like Braithwaite enable FFLC to keep putting food on the table for those in need. FFLC sees a good number of students volunteer their time and effort to reach out to the community.
Volunteer opportunities for students can be anything from sorting and packaging donated food to preparing warm meals for the community. Planting in local gardens and greenhouses is also a popular volunteer action through FFLC. The opportunities are flexible with student schedules, making it convenient for everyone to assist in some manner.
But according to Braithwaite, the experience of volunteering is more than just putting in time because you think you have to.
“When you’re there, you are spending time with other people who think volunteering is important. Being with people like that makes the whole experience enjoyable and really connects you with the community in a different way,” he said.
Many students, like Braithwaite, become connected to FFLC or other volunteer opportunities through fraternities, sororities or classes at the University.
But with such a heavy reliance on members in the community to volunteer, FFLC still has a growing need for students to help. While many students would like to reach out to the community, not enough take advantage of the chances to do so.
Even if schedules prohibit the opportunity to physically volunteer, anyone can donate money to FFLC. Every dollar of donated money translates into three meals for the needy in Lane County. Also, donating extra cans of food takes mere minutes but helps keep the nonprofit functioning.
As the holiday season approaches, students will begin considering gifts for family and friends. Part of that experience is the difficulty of finding something that the recipient can actually use and benefit from.
So as students scour the local malls thinking of loved ones, Woodward hopes a few of them think to help people they may never meet but who will truly be grateful.
“Students should be a part of their community and help while they can. They will be glad that they did,” she said.
As the time of giving approaches, students can provide the gift of support to those who need it most. The present of a full stomach and a brief respite from troubles is all that many ask for this holiday season. There are few greater gifts to give.
In the end, volunteers get the feeling of making a difference in someone’s life. That may be the most satisfying gift they get in return this holiday season.
Through FOOD for Lane County, University students have opportunity to give back this holiday season
Daily Emerald
November 19, 2011
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