If my math is correct, it’s been fifty years since I first stood outside the Twin Fair discount store and rang a bell, pleading for donations at a Salvation Army kettle. A great deal has changed since 1970, but some truths remain. Here’s the first one. Say what you want about global warming and climate change, but Western New York and northern Ohio have some mighty cold temperatures during the month of December.
A second truth is that there is a wide disparity between what we might casually say are the “haves” and the “have-nots.” In 2019, Elise Gould of the Economic Policy Institute told congressional leaders that “in recent decades, the vast majority of Americans have experienced disappointing growth in their living standards – despite economic growth that could have easily generated faster gains in their living standards had it been broadly shared.” Speaking for this non-partisan economic think tank, she noted that “the top one percent of household income has grown 229 percent since 1979, far in excess of the slower 46 percent growth . . . for the bottom ninety percent of households.” And that was pre-OVID-19.
People across the United States are struggling to pay rent or mortgage, to put food on the table, and to survive. Some live in poverty-stricken neighborhoods, while others look just like the middle-class family they’ve been for years, but are no longer. Small business owners, restaurant workers, and those with supporting roles in entertainment and sports are hanging on by a thread. If they cut the thread and look for other work, they may never work again in a job they love. But if they don’t, how long can they hold on? Whether the words of Jesus were meant to be prescriptive or descriptive, in 2020, they are accurate. “You will always have the poor among you” (Matthew 26:11). The economic realities of our day are life-altering.
A third truth: there is a generosity of heart among human beings that can take my breath away. Even with scarce resources, corona virus challenges, and all kinds of logistical headaches, compassion is winning this battle.
At Catholic Charities in Ashland County, a plan was developed to prepare two hundred “Staying Safe Boxes” for seniors. The response was overwhelming, and deliveries of these care packages are helping older adults remain safe and able to celebrate the holidays in their own homes.
One of the privileges of my many years of Salvation Army involvement was to have a part in providing for presents under the tree for struggling families. It’s what we do at Christmas time. But in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, models of service delivery we’ve depended on for years are too risky. Many centers have opted for drive-through, contactless distribution plans, which means toys, clothing and food have to be pre-packaged, a back-breaking, labor-intensive effort. Having worked in the Canton distribution on Monday and Tuesday, I nearly asked my Facebook friends if 7:45 p.m. was too early to go to bed on Wednesday night (after a day of remote learning with the grands – but that’s another story).
The Salvation Army, Associated Charities, Catholic Charities, United Way, Shop with a Cop, and other organizations depend on the support of others to sustain the work we do. Once in a blue moon, word comes from someone like Joan Kroc or MacKenzie Scott (ex-wife of Amazon’s Jeff Bezos) that rocks the news cycle with a philanthropic gift in the millions of dollars. But more often, it’s the quarter or dollar bill in the red kettle, the gift purchased for a foster child, or the box of goodies delivered to an isolated senior that makes a world of difference.
I’ve witnessed much giving and receiving since those frigid days at Twin Fair. For me, the beauty of Christmas is in the sacrificial gift: the comb and watchchain in O. Henry’s Gift of the Magi, Ernie’s Rubber Duckie and Bert’s paper clip collection in Christmas Eve on Sesame Street, and the canned ham from the Herdman’s charity basket in The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. In the sacrifice we see a reflection of the birth of a babe on a starry night in Bethlehem. Merry Christmas.
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