Post by Clipper on Nov 16, 2022 11:27:46 GMT -5
We just got the weekly ads from local grocers and Food City is advertising Butterball Turkeys for 99cent per pound with the purchase of $25 worth of "store brand" products. I am going to head to Kroger's shortly in hopes of buying one of their store brand turkeys for THIRTY NINE cents a pound with a $25 purchase. I imagine the turkeys won't last long at that price. Hopefully they will give rain checks if they run out. Aldi's is still selling Butterball turkeys for $1.07 lb. If you are able, consider buying a turkey or two at the sale prices to donate to a local shelter that provides Thanksgiving dinners for the needy. Food pantries are seeing shortages, and the local food banks are also in need of donations. The food banks support those individual charity's food pantries, and that in turn is going to impact or limit the ability of some charities being able to provide dinners to those who are in need.
There was a time in my life when through no one else's fault but my own I could have found myself homeless and without money to eat. That has always seemed to prompt me to share with those in need for whatever reason. I was fortunate when I came out of alcohol rehab that my employer had held my job. I ended up sleeping at the YMCA in a $6 per day room for a period of time on my way to a series of apartments going from a slum on Steuben St, to a nice apartment on James St, and finally to a flat in West Utica. I was able to pay my child support, put gas in a $150 Rambler to get to work and AA meetings, and enough money to eat. It was a long climb back to a late model car and that flat in West Utica. I became very aware of those less fortunate that lived at the Y who did NOT have enough money to better their living situation, and some of them ate at the rescue mission or panhandled for enough to buy a meal or cup of coffee, some of whom were also there because of alcoholism and broken marriages. One man in particular had become a friend while we were both in rehab. He also ended up at the Y. He didn't have a job, was being treated for severe depression, and unfortunately ended up hanging himself in a shower at the Y when his ex-wife refused to allow him to see his children.
Kathy and I are far from wealthy, but I guess we are soft hearted when it comes to thinking about people without enough to eat, or children without Christmas gifts. We don't go overboard but we get a good deal of satisfaction and pleasure from knowing that our contributions make SOMEONE'S day a bit better. People just don't seem to realize that they can offer relief without spending a lot of money. In summer when it was over 90 degrees for days at a time it had little to no impact on the budget to drop a couple of $2.99 cases of bottled water off to the Haven of Rest mission to be given out to homeless people who had to spend their days on the streets, not able to return to the shelter until evening. Today it will be a 99 cent per pound turkey for Haven of Rest and a $1.07 a pound Butterball for us.
Growing up we dressed in clothes from Star's, Nichol's, and State St. Mill, not My Boy's Shop and the Boston Store. We didn't eat high on the hog, nor did we ever go without a meal. I guess my parents instilled an awareness in us that it doesn't have to be a large contribution, but that every little bit of help can translate to a lot of help to those on the receiving end.
I hope that we all can count our blessings and the lives we are able to have a roof over our heads and food in our belly, and as a result, find ourselves with an increased awareness of the heart breaking plight of those less fortunate during this holiday season and the upcoming winter weather. That is my sole purpose in relating our charitable contributions. We certainly don't give enough to charity to use it as a tax shelter and we don't walk around patting ourselves on the back. We just find that the prospect of putting a hot meal in someone's belly or a smile on their face brings us joy. Whether it be a buck in a red kettle or a donation to a food pantry, I hope that we all can open our hearts and our wallets to those in dire need these troubled times.
There was a time in my life when through no one else's fault but my own I could have found myself homeless and without money to eat. That has always seemed to prompt me to share with those in need for whatever reason. I was fortunate when I came out of alcohol rehab that my employer had held my job. I ended up sleeping at the YMCA in a $6 per day room for a period of time on my way to a series of apartments going from a slum on Steuben St, to a nice apartment on James St, and finally to a flat in West Utica. I was able to pay my child support, put gas in a $150 Rambler to get to work and AA meetings, and enough money to eat. It was a long climb back to a late model car and that flat in West Utica. I became very aware of those less fortunate that lived at the Y who did NOT have enough money to better their living situation, and some of them ate at the rescue mission or panhandled for enough to buy a meal or cup of coffee, some of whom were also there because of alcoholism and broken marriages. One man in particular had become a friend while we were both in rehab. He also ended up at the Y. He didn't have a job, was being treated for severe depression, and unfortunately ended up hanging himself in a shower at the Y when his ex-wife refused to allow him to see his children.
Kathy and I are far from wealthy, but I guess we are soft hearted when it comes to thinking about people without enough to eat, or children without Christmas gifts. We don't go overboard but we get a good deal of satisfaction and pleasure from knowing that our contributions make SOMEONE'S day a bit better. People just don't seem to realize that they can offer relief without spending a lot of money. In summer when it was over 90 degrees for days at a time it had little to no impact on the budget to drop a couple of $2.99 cases of bottled water off to the Haven of Rest mission to be given out to homeless people who had to spend their days on the streets, not able to return to the shelter until evening. Today it will be a 99 cent per pound turkey for Haven of Rest and a $1.07 a pound Butterball for us.
Growing up we dressed in clothes from Star's, Nichol's, and State St. Mill, not My Boy's Shop and the Boston Store. We didn't eat high on the hog, nor did we ever go without a meal. I guess my parents instilled an awareness in us that it doesn't have to be a large contribution, but that every little bit of help can translate to a lot of help to those on the receiving end.
I hope that we all can count our blessings and the lives we are able to have a roof over our heads and food in our belly, and as a result, find ourselves with an increased awareness of the heart breaking plight of those less fortunate during this holiday season and the upcoming winter weather. That is my sole purpose in relating our charitable contributions. We certainly don't give enough to charity to use it as a tax shelter and we don't walk around patting ourselves on the back. We just find that the prospect of putting a hot meal in someone's belly or a smile on their face brings us joy. Whether it be a buck in a red kettle or a donation to a food pantry, I hope that we all can open our hearts and our wallets to those in dire need these troubled times.
