What YOU can do

Today is "Blog Action Day" in the Catholic Charities USA's Campaign to Reduce Poverty, a campaign to cut poverty in half by 2020. While I'm not Catholic, I support this effort and got a little email today asking me to join with other bloggers in a unified voice to talk about poverty today.

37 million people in America live in poverty. What can you and I do to help cut this number in half in the next 12 years?

Get involved! Find an organization in your community that reaches out to those in poverty. Volunteer for events at the organization, to do office work, or sort donations. Donate old clothes, household items, and food to organizations that will distribute them to those in need. Many churches have food banks and clothing banks. Non-profit organizations like Catholic Charities often have "wish lists" posted on their websites of items they need. Your local newspaper may also have a community section where needed items are listed.

But perhaps you can help closer to home-you might have a friend or family member who you know has been struggling, due to loss of employment, health issues, or the general economic pinch we've all been in lately-buy a pack of diapers for a friend with a baby if you see them on sale. When Publix has buy one get one free sales, give your "free" items to a neighbor. Clean out your closet for a friend who is about the same size if she needs clothing for work.

In such uncertain economic times, it is more important than ever to make sure we are fighting to reduce the number of families living in poverty, rather than allowing more people to join the 37 million already in need of hope for a better future. If we each donate our unwanted goods, our time, our skills, and our compassion this campaign will succeed-but we have to work together.

If you'd like more information on how the campaign plans to accomplish its goals, check out this:
http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/NetCommunity/Document.Doc?id=1029

If you'd like to read about other ways you can reduce poverty, check out this list here (including links to more facts and statistics about poverty):
http://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/NetCommunity/Document.Doc?id=571