Tragedy #002 - Poverty

Part of my job as the Administrative/Ministry Assistant at my church is to help run the small food bank we have. We don't discriminate on race, age, gender, or anything else; if you need help, we'll do the best we can to make it happen, no strings attached. I think this is a pretty good gig for some folks. We give out a certain number of pounds of food to each family, and even help out with utility bills or gasoline for people who are traveling. Like I said, we don't really ask questions, just what we need to know for government reporting purposes, and to make sure there really is a need. I am constantly amazed by 1) just how many people we help every day, and 2) the number of people who try to pull one over on us. I live in a small town, about 11,000 people, but the poverty level here is above average. All the lower-level income jobs are taken by college students from the two colleges here, so there is little opportunity for employment. I don't have the exact figures on how many people we help a day, but normally every afternoon I help at least 1-3 families. They can come once a month, so 2 families per day times 30 is about 60 families a month that come in during my work hours alone. Most of these people are kind, just down-on-their-luck type folks who are grateful for any help we can give. Many times I've ended up having discussions with the people that come in about their lives, their families, their dreams, and really being blessed by what they have to say. Then there are the exceptions. People get so angry when we can't pay the whole electric bill, don't have the kind of food they really like, or don't have exactly what they're asking for. We get people all the time trying to take advantage of our goodwill. We had one gentleman drive up, park his car sideways across all the parking spaces in front of our office, hop out of the car, and jump up the step. Then when I came to the door to let him in, he mysteriously developed a terrible limp, and started telling me about how he couldn't work due to his disability and being barely able to walk. I suspected this wasn't the case, but as is our policy, I politely gave him the food he asked for. He limped his way over to the car, and then suddenly his spryness was back. He hopped down the steps with great agility, jumped into his car, and yelled to his passenger, "We got it!" I felt so taken advantage of. People will also pretend to be overly religious, thinking it will help get them assistance. I really could care less what someones religious beliefs are when it comes to this, if you need help I'm going to help you. I'm actually more prone to helping someone who will honestly tell me they are an atheist, than someone who is obviously pretending to be an over-the-top Christian. I don't mind is helping people who are willing to work for some help, or are really trying to find a way to provide for themselves, but I absolutely despise helping those are just living off taxpayer's dollars and charities because that's the easiest thing to do. I was complaining to TC about this the other day, and he patiently looked at me and reminded me our goal was to help all people, not just the ones we felt like helping. Put me right in my place. Reminded me that there was a time in my life when our church helped us pay the bills, and brought food over for us due to my Dad's heart surgery. I don't know what we would've done without them. The whole situation just frustrates me, because day in and day out I'm confronted with poverty right here in my backyard. I've traveled to Kenya and Chile and seen the poverty there, and it's hard to believe the United States is so committed to helping those countries when we still have such an obvious need here at home. All that we're doing seems like just a drop in the ocean. The toughest part of this, though, is knowing it just doesn't have to be this way. There's more than enough food on the Earth to feed everyone, and enough clothing and shelter to provide security to all as well. It's too bad our society can't figure out a way to make it all work.