Food Shelves: Why You Should Give, and How

Unless you're a member of a church or other non-profit organization, chances are you don't think very often about giving to your local food shelf or food bank.

Well, to put it bluntly, the time to think about it is now. The U.S. is sinking deeper into a recession, unemployment rates are at a record high, and more and more Americans are having trouble making ends meet. For many families, local food shelves are the only way to make regular meals a possibility.

Now, perhaps this talk of people needing charities has got you thinking along some social Darwinist lines. Perhaps you think people shouldn't have families if they can't afford to feed them, that people in poverty should just go and get a better job, and it's their own lookout if they don't.

Wake up. Reality is, it's getting tougher to earn a living every day, and it's just going to keep getting worse. The rich are getting richer, and the poor are not only getting poorer, they're getting more numerous. Now is not the time to hang on to the idea that we live in a just meritocracy. The fact is, we live in a world where a day's labor does not in any way guarantee even a meager day's living for an individual, let alone a family.

So for those of us who can do it, now is the time to begin regularly donating to food shelves. Even small donations can make an enormous difference, if the purchasing is done intelligently. Here's a few tips to get the most out of the money you spend on donations:

Buy staple foods like pasta, oatmeal, and rice. Bread is good, but it doesn't last as long.

Buy canned goods which will go well with staple foods. Thing like pasta sauce and tuna fish are good because they can be made into dishes which are nutritious and will go a long way.

Ramen. It isn't healthy, but it's a way to provide many meals for under a dollar.

Produce is often lacking at food shelves because it is highly perishable. Try donating dried fruit. Along the same lines, give powdered milk.

Most people don't realize that non-food groceries are in extremely high demand for people at food shelves. Donate things like soap, toilet paper, toothpaste and especially, diapers.

Remember when the most important times of year to donate are: holidays, when extra and special food are much wanted for celebration, and the beginning of summer when many mothers have to deal with the sudden need to feed children for all three meals a day.