A Moment for the Season

I wanted to take a moment and thank you for your kindness this year. I am posting this blog to all of you specifically for a very special reason. Giving is quality and gift I value, see, and cherish in you! You demonstrate the gift of giving through your actions and it is remarkable.

As you head out for a delightful holiday break, I encourage you to think deeply about our community and the world. We live in area, state, nation, and world with great need. What is your calling or role to play over the break? Can we work with others to develop the gift of giving that surpasses the holiday gift giving buzz?

Let's take a moment to think.
.....If you have a bed to sleep on you are privileged. 5,500 people in Cedar Rapids use our shelters every year. 150 people and families were turned away due to over crowding. This number has increased 24% since the flood.

....if the Coe Student population represented the average free and reduced lunch rate of Garfield, Polk, Johnson, and Taylor Elementaries we serve, 996 of our students would go hungry over Christmas Break. How would this affect our work?

.....Just released in October 2010 by the FAO, 925 million people around the world are hungry and malnourished.

.....How many of you have $3,000.00 - 5,000.00 to buy your child their holiday wish this season? If you had a loved one who had cancer or lost their hair to illness, it would cost them this much to buy a real hair piece.

What can you do:

This week:
GIVE. A new food pantry by a faith based community is being opened in the flood zone. We can help them in this endeavor. Find the box in the pub! Use coe cash to buy an item, bring your leftover easy mac from your res hall room, or spend 70 cents at the store and buy fruit! Let support their effort.

RECYCLE: Got old books? Better World Books! If you have any used books, we need them. We will receive a $1.00 to support meals for Haiti and a $1.00 for books being sent to Haiti. Look for the green bins in Gage or the Res Hall Lobbies!

Over break:
Leftovers? Yes, if you have them give them. Most of our weekend meal serving places close due to the Holidays. Turn leftover turkey into BBQ sandwiches for those who need lunches during the day. Don't want any more cookies? Take them to a local shelter. It really makes the clients day!

Past the Holiday Gift Giving Buzz:
Don't have money! YOU CAN STILL GIVE TIME OR HAIR! Your volunteer hour is worth $17.00 to a local non profit. Volunteer 6 hours at a local Cedar Rapids non profit. It is like giving $100.00. Busy with family or friends and don't have time? Growing your hair out 10 inches and donating it to locks of love to make a hair piece is like giving a $600.00 - $1,000.00 donation to child who has lost their hair. No time required! Just patience to grow out your hair.

We each can give money, time, or our used items. Let's join together to give and encourage others to do the same this week, over break, and beyond. The moment is now!