Season of Sharing: In rough times, the need is much greater


Yakima Herald-Republic Editorial Board

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This editorial appears in the Nov. 26, 2009, Yakima Herald-Republic.

Season of Sharing is a program we hope will one day fade out of existence.

We doubt, though, that's going to happen anytime soon.

Since 2001, the Yakima Herald-Republic has sponsored Season of Sharing, which connects community benefactors with needy families in the Yakima Valley. Through the generous assistance of Sirena Phillips, Yakima County's RSVP volunteer coordinator, local nonprofit agencies provide names and stories about families in need, which this newspaper publishes. The stories begin in today's edition and continue until Christmas.

As in years past, the needs of those in Central Washington continue to overwhelm social service agencies and food banks.

Typical of the heartwarming response to Season of Sharing stories is one that was published last year about a 3-year-old girl and her family's Christmas tree -- a plastic evergreen tree -- that had no presents beneath it. A group of Highland Junior High School students in the Cowiche area responded to the family's plea for help and made the girl's holiday a special one to remember.

That story has been repeated hundreds of times over the years through the Season of Sharing.

Helping others in need is a powerful theme at this time of year.

And despite the economic woes for the past year, charity still rings loud and clear in America. Though the recession has been the worst since the Great Depression, Americans gave more than $307 billion to charities in 2008, according to the Giving USA Foundation.

Human services agencies in the U.S. saw a considerable uptick in demand in 2008 with a 54 percent increase over the previous year. Support for children suffered the most in terms of having sufficient funds to meet demand.

Though agencies during last year's Season of Sharing agreed demand for their services rose, so too did the donations.

We hope that trend of benevolence continues during this year's Season of Sharing. Sadly, we know the need for help will be there, too.


* Members of the Yakima Herald-Republic editorial board are Michael Shepard, Bob Crider, Spencer Hatton and Karen Troianello.



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