What would you do?

Foodshare staffer, Jill Nulsen, shares her thoughts on community and why we need you to be involved:

"On my drive into Foodshare each morning, traveling north on Woodland Avenue, I pass a middle-aged woman walking south, toward Bloomfield. Every day, no matter the weather or how cold it is, she is walking, presumably to work, as she is typically dressed for work (on this morning it was -3). These days, with all of the snow coverage, she is walking in the road. Presumably, also, I am not the only person driving to work, in either direction. Where is the person who might stop and offer this woman a ride on their way into town? Isn’t that what “community” is about?

I know another woman, an elderly woman, who lives in a condo complex in an impoverished part of Hartford. She tells me the complex residents, with less than 20 living units, can no longer afford to pay for someone to advocate for them through their condo association. Since they gave up their management company, one of the residents has begun allowing all of his buddies to hang out in their common area, every day after 4pm, loitering and drinking and making this 70 year old woman feel that her home is not safe. They have overtaken all of the adjacent parking, so this woman is now walking a distance just to get between her car and her home. While she’d like to leave, she can’t afford to sell because property values have decreased. Where is the person with the advocacy knowledge and skills to advocate for this small group of people? Do you have these skills? Would you offer to help? Isn’t this also what “community” is?

Working at Foodshare has given this staffer a sense that I am part of a community of individuals who are truly passionate about changing the nature of our community – providing food and resources to people who, for whatever reason, are unable to provide for themselves at this point in time. Watching the Hunger Action Team work unfold near my cubicle on a daily basis is astounding. When a community comes together around issues where they live, amazing changes can take place.

So will you respond to this call to action? Are you engaged? Do you have skills, time, talents, or resources that could radically change lives around you? I urge you to be involved!"