2022 Holiday Wishes - Final Draft.pdf -

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2022 ADOPT-A-FAMILY HOLIDAY WISH LIST MEDIA FOOD BANK Every year around the holidays a number of requests come in from donors wanting to speci ically help those struggling in the local community. Below is a list of holiday wishes from Delaware County residents currently having a rough time. Also included is a little background of how, if granted, these wishes could make 2023 better than 2022. Any and all inquiries can be emailed to m bholidaywishes@yahoo.com. Happy Holidays to all donors, volunteers, and clients who are part of the Food Bank! ________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Family A Family A is a single guy in his early 20s who is currently living in his car and trying to get somewhat established. Holiday Wish: To stay warm as the weather gets colder. His solution to that is gas money to run the heat in the car at night, but the food bank is currently reviewing alternative (and more ef icient) options. One is to get him into a hotel room during the coldest months (January and February). At least one person has committed to paying for a week. For the sake of this project, it would be a lot more ef icient to ind several donors willing to come together and cover the cost of getting him accommodations off the street during the cold weather. Supporting Character Commentary: This young man has a very gentle demeanor and you’d never guess he was homeless. He always has a clean appearance and is well spoken. As of this writing, he is starting a job as a delivery driver but unsure if the company will keep him long. The volunteers who meet him will regularly ask what his story is because of that gentle demeanor and their instinct to want to help him. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Family B Family B is a husband and wife couple currently dealing with a number of health issues. Holiday Wish: Lumber to repair the rotting porch foundation OR Get help repairing the husband’s car so he can get to work. (vehicle inspection report is available on request) Supporting Character Commentary: This couple has had the unfortunate experience of going from doing very well in life to having a rough time. They illustrate the concept people talk about when they say “it can happen to anyone”. In this case a stage 4 cancer battle forced them to give up the comfortable salary and start cutting back in life. As time went on it has become harder to build back to the life they used to have. Despite the hardships, it is admirable the way they stay determined and focused through the mounting stresses. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Family C Family C is a mother and adult daughter who each are dealing with a number of health issues. Holiday wish: Get a computer for daughter’s college classes. The last one was old and recently stopped working OR Ge̶ t̶ a̶ n̶ e̶ l̶e̶c̶ t̶r̶ic̶ ̶ p̶ r̶ e̶s̶ s̶u̶r̶ e̶ c̶ a̶n̶ n̶ e̶ r̶ f̶o̶r̶ s̶ t̶o̶r̶ in ̶ ̶ g̶ f̶o̶o̶ d̶ o̶ v̶ e̶r̶ t̶h̶e̶ w̶i̶n̶t̶e̶r̶ (Gift has been claimed) OR Get legal help from a real estate attorney to “untangle a tangled title.” This family lives in a house in need of great repair, but they are not asking for any help improving it unless and until they are able to take ownership of the property. The story is rather involved, but they have the permission from the owner to live there and the owner is willing to gift them the house if they do the legwork at getting the title “untangled”. Supporting Character Commentary: These ladies are among some of the most dif icult people to help because they are always worried they are taking away from someone else. They have an especially hard time because aside from their health ailments, they are from rural Pennsylvania farm country. A place with a lifestyle that does not translate easily into Delaware County Living. The daughter is in school working towards a career in medicine and their current income comes from online tutoring that pays $8 an hour. They live incredibly modestly (and frugally) with a strong belief they need to be responsible for themselves and are always hesitant to accept help because they don’t want to “take from someone who needs it more.” __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Family D Family D is made up of an older matriarch raising her 4 young grandkids. (All under 12) Holiday Wish: A computer for the children’s schooling. During the pandemic the school district gave the kids computers to use, but they had to turn them in and have been using tablets for research. Supporting Character Commentary: The children’s mother has some issues that make her unable to care for the children. It is admirable the way the grandmother has taken on the parenting role. She herself only had one daughter, but now she’s parenting 4 all at once in addition to some severe health issues. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Family E Family E is made up of 2 adults and 3 teenage daughters. The man is a contractor during the summer and drives for uber when work is slow. Holiday Wish: Help paying for heating oil. The man recently bought the minimum amount for $500, but it is feared it won’t last half of the winter season. Supporting Character Commentary: This is a blended family where the man is a single dad to the 3 daughters. The irst time he came to the food bank he was shy and hesitant as it was a new experience, but he lit up with appreciation when he saw the food he and the other clients received. During his time at the Food Bank, it has become clear that he is a very devoted and attentive parent in what can be an awkward dynamic (single dad and teen girls). To learn more about helping any of the families on this list, please email m bholidaywishes@yahoo.com Family F Family F is a family of 5 with 2 parents & 3 kids Holiday Wish : Get help repairing cracked stucco in their house (Photo is Below). There is a slight language barrier and apparently they’ve had a hard experience inding contractor help, so ideally somebody would be able to assist in inding someone capable to do the job, not just pay the bill. Supporting Character Commentary: This family is very sweet and always tries their best to demonstrate their appreciation for whatever they get. Chinese is their native language, but you can tell their sincerity through a relatively strong accent. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Family G Family G is a family of 4. A dad, a wheelchair bound mother, and two elementary aged boys Holiday Wish: A new washing machine (or help ixing the one they have) Supporting Character Commentary: This family is very gentle and grateful for all of the things they receive. Due to the fact that English is not their irst language, communication regarding this project has been a challenge. Most of the communication has been done via their 10 year old son. His initial response when asked about a need for the family to act as a holiday wish was “toys”. However, upon further pressing, the need for a washing machine came up. Further details will need to be collected before moving forward on this project however. The irst will be inding out if the washer can be ixed. ***If anyone happens to be able to translate Vietnamese, please reach out*** __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ To learn more about helping any of the families on this list, please email m bholidaywishes@yahoo.com Family H Family H is an elderly single woman Holiday Wish: Get educated advice/consultation with someone who can answer questions about getting dentures. She is not yet comfortable actually asking for help getting dentures, but she has questions and it is a de inite need so for the purpose of this list, she would like to ind someone she is comfortable with to possibly walk with her through the process and go over her options. Supporting Character Commentary: This woman has not had the easiest of paths in life. By nature she enjoys socialization, but for a number of reasons she has spent a lot of her life alone. Those experiences have led to a rather guarded exterior, but once one gains her trust, she is very grateful and appreciative. It has become a Sunday Distribution tradition for her to come at the end simply so her preferred “fan club” of volunteers will be available to wait on her. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Family I Family I is a single mother raising her 3 kids. Holiday Wish: To bring her sick mother from Africa to the USA so she can care for her. This particular wish is more of a “reach” as there is no clear way to make it happen. When asked what her plan was she said “write to immigration” and wait for a reply. Depending on if they get a “green light” and if this project goes well a plane ticket could be on next year's wish list. If anyone happens to be willing to advise her on how to go about getting immigration permission, please feel free to reach out. Supporting Character Commentary: This woman has had some rough experiences in life which has led to her having a bumpy Food Bank experience. In the end however, she has demonstrated a level of appreciation in her own way. She recently spent 2 months overseas caring for her mother and upon returning she has clearly stated a desire to care for her mom for the rest of her life. That level of dedication is not always common, especially in today’s world, and it says a lot about a person’s character. As stated above, this is more of a “reach” wish, but it is being included in the stray chance someone has wisdom or guidance they are willing to share. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Family J Family J is a single mom raising 4 kids Holiday Wish: Ne̶ w̶ t̶ir̶ ̶ e̶s̶ f̶o̶r̶ c̶ a̶r̶ (Gift has been claimed) OR Ho̶ m̶e̶ c̶ o̶m̶p̶ u̶ t̶e̶r̶ f̶o̶r̶ k̶ i̶d̶s̶ s̶ c̶h̶o̶ o̶ l̶w̶o̶ r̶ k̶ (Gift has been claimed) Supporting Character Commentary: This family is re-establishing itself after the father of the children died unexpectedly. It is admirable the way the mother puts the kids' needs irst. To learn more about helping any of the families on this list, please email m bholidaywishes@yahoo.com