By Patrick W. O’Keefe
As I sat down to write this, before Thanksgiving, I was worrying about the jury verdict about to come back in my criminal case. My stomach was tied in knots. I’ve not been able to sleep much. I was weary from the court proceedings being crammed in before Thanksgiving.
And then it dawned on me – I was fortunate enough to have a full stomach.
Writing about something so basic and so taken for granted by many of us helped me put my career as a trial lawyer into perspective. It’s not simply my job to do justice. It’s also my job to help the poor. So why haven’t I contributed much to the food bank over the years to ensure the impoverished people of our communities can have a full stomach?
Daily, hundreds of low-income residents of all ages in our area cannot afford well-balanced meals for their families and for themselves. These people live with a real hunger that is foreign to most of us.
The Greater Lansing Food Bank, providing assistance to people in Ingham, Eaton, Clinton, Shiawassee, Gratiot, Clare and Isabella counties, is a non-profit organization that provides emergency food to those in need. Many who have been forced to rely on the Food Bank never imagined they would need to request assistance, but barren cupboards and empty pockets forced them to turn to soup kitchens and food pantries.
Every dollar received by the Food Bank provides more than three meals as the buying power makes your donation go farther.
I will never forget the time my parents took us kids to donate Christmas gifts and groceries to a family in need on the other side of the tracks. I was about 12 years old. I was scared. This was a new situation for me. I couldn’t imagine meeting a complete stranger and donating these items. Sure, I knew it was charitable, but I had no idea at the time what a lasting impression it would have on me.
The Food Bank makes it possible for people like you to donate in similar ways; nothing spells love and caring like healthy, hearty food. Nothing brings people together more than food.
In 2017, over seven million meals were distributed. . . with more than 40 percent of the meals going to children.
You can make a difference in the lives of our hungry neighbors. Financial contributions are sorely needed.
Donate by credit card by calling the Greater Lansing Food Bank at (517) 853-7800; online at http://greaterlansingfoodbank.org/get-involved/give-money; or mail a check, payable to “Greater Lansing Food Bank” to P.O. Box 16224, Lansing, MI 48901.
Look for the Greater Lansing Food Bank contribution envelope enclosed with this issue of the Ingham County Legal News—and please use it.
Your financial assistance and participation are needed and welcomed. The work of the Greater Lansing Food Bank would not be possible without your support.
Please take a few minutes to think about how you’ve felt when you’ve gone hungry. Then multiply that by 100 days and you have the average number of days our neighbors have felt that same, empty feeling. Please consider donating to the Greater Lansing Food Bank, not just because it will better their lives, but because it will also better your own.
