Thank you!

The words “thank you” can sometimes be inadequate. Consider the case of one middle-aged man who was in line at one of our Mobile Foodshare sites just before Christmas. The weather that morning was absolutely miserable—torrential rain, howling wind, and temperatures just above freezing—and the distribution site was in a section of Hartford where most of the buildings have boarded-up windows. Despite those conditions, more than 50 people waited patiently for the Foodshare truck to arrive and the tables to be set up and stocked with food. 

The middle-aged man, like several others, was wearing a garbage bag as a poncho, but the wind whipped it around his shoulders, and he was soaked and shivering as he came through the line to collect some broccoli, a loaf of bread, a bunch of bananas, a case of yogurt, and several tomatoes. As he came to the last table and accepted the broccoli, he looked up with perfect dignity and a level gaze and said “thank you for this.”

From the tone of his voice, it was clear that this food represented far more than nutrition. It meant that some of his food money could instead be used to pay for his heat or a winter coat for his children. It meant he could make ends meet this month despite the ever-increasing cost of living and never-increasing wages. Perhaps most important, it meant he was not facing his challenges alone.

That’s why I’m writing today. Next year, this man will be joined by too many others needing assistance, and I’m asking you to go here and make the most generous year-end donation you can, so we can expand this vital work and give all of them that priceless gift of hope.

On behalf of our clients and all of us at Foodshare, Thank You!

Sincerely,

Gloria J. McAdam
President & CEO

P.S. Please remember, online donations must be processed and mail-in donations must be postmarked by midnight on December 31 to be considered as a 2012 tax deduction. If you've already made your year-end donation, please pass this message to a friend.