There is no shortage of opportunities for Langley residents to show their charitable side this holiday season.
Whether it’s a shelter, looking to provide meals and clothing for the homeless, a food bank trying to fill the cupboards of low-income families and individuals, or an animal shelter issuing a desperate plea for help to feed hungry bear cubs, the need is evident and it seems to be never-ending.
This is the time of year when people tend to dig a little bit deeper to support many worthy causes. It’s the season of giving, and that’s a good thing, because it’s also the season during which want is most keenly felt.
That’s why agencies such as the Langley Christmas Bureau resume their work each autumn and volunteers for the Salvation Army once more take their places, manning Christmas kettles outside Langley stores.
These, and other seasonal efforts, play a crucial role in helping to ensure people with limited means have, at minimum, a hearty meal and a gift or two to unwrap.
But once the lights have been taken down, the tree chipped and the last hot turkey sandwich eaten, we have a tendency to return to our daily routine and think less often about neighbours who may be scraping by.
It’s a constant struggle for food banks, for example, where each Thanksgiving and Christmas — and perhaps at Easter — they see a jump in donations, but are forced to make do for much of the year, when donations slow to a trickle.
The remedy for our collective forgetfulness might be something as simple as a note on each calendar page or arranging a regular pre-paid contribution, via credit card or post-dated cheques.
It makes sense from both a budgeting point of view — smaller regular payments, versus a large lump sum at a time of year when finances are already strained — and in terms of helping the organizations that many depend upon, year-round, to avoid the cycle of feast or famine.
