Food is nourishment, body and community, physical and spiritual.  And hunger is a moral issue.  This is always the case... but especially these days when aid is being cut, and programs that help out the most vulnerable in society are being systematically attacked.  

Many of us feel called to respond, individually and collectively.  Please consider the following invitation, and the opportunities that follow...

My name is Jen Vose, and I’m a member of UUSGS.  I’m the Mom of 2 school-aged children – a vocation that requires a great deal of my physical, emotional, and spiritual energies (as I’m sure other parents can relate). Some of the most concrete, tangible tasks that top my to-do list each and every day surround food – updating grocery lists, planning and preparing meals, baking my family’s favorite desserts, etc. Admittedly though, amidst the bustle and multitude of other demands on my daily radar screen, feeding the family can sometimes become a mindless task – one that I know I take for granted.
 
Just the other day, as I labored over lunch boxes in the early (dark) hours of a school day morning, I heard a story on our local NPR station that went straight to my soul. The reporter spoke of food shortages, right here in our community, that may reach unprecedented levels in the coming days – funding and food scarcity that may leave food banks scrambling and families without food. Period. These words sobered me. I took a deep breath, connected with my gratitude, and lovingly placed the apples I had just sliced into my kids’ lunchboxes. I thought of the Mom, perhaps just doors or blocks away, whose heart breaks at the thought of no full lunchboxes for her kids to take to school that day – or the next, or the next. “This simply should not be,” I thought to myself. “No Mom, or Dad, or Aunty, or Abuelo should ever, EVER face being unable to feed their children.” But yet, here we are.
 
I am so grateful to be part of this UUSGS community – a community who shows up for neighbors, who strives to bring more love into the world, and who works to honor the inherent worth and dignity of every person. Whether you are new to this community or are a decades-long member, I hope you will join me and my family in extending our embrace to neighbors within and beyond our walls who need our love and support. Throughout the month of November, if you have any non-perishable foods to share, please bring them to UUSGS.   Let’s collect as much food as we can, sending each can, each box, each package off with intention and love.

Throughout November, our response at UUSGS will include the following:

  • We will be collecting non-perishable food items all month long at UUSGS for donation to The Gray House.
  • Our Offering collections during November will benefit the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts.  They are quite effective with financial donations and can ensure our generosity gets food into the hands of folks who need it most.
  • UUSGS maintains a discretionary fund, which can provide small-scale emergency support.  Administered by our Minsiter, Rev. Jason, requests are welcome on an ongoing basis and are always confidential.
  • UUSGS hosts Soulful Supper on most Wednesday evenings at 6PM.  Donations and volunteers are welcome but never required.  Come hungry and be fed!

 

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Social Justice