When I hear someone say that people in poverty deserve what they get because they are lazy, it brings back memories of my mother working hard every day to keep us fed while we wrapped up with all the blankets we could find to save on electricity.
Twenty percent of our population in Vancouver lives below the poverty level. Nearly 6 percent of our population lives on less than half the poverty level. For a three-person family, that is about $800 a month. The majority of these families are single mothers with children. There is no way to pay rent and give these children a happy healthy childhood without the help of our community.
Maybe many of us feel like we are too busy so we don’t get involved. Everyone may have their own reasons, but I would leave you with a reminder. As a child, one of the greatest things someone in my community did was stop by our trailer and give us a bag of food to show that they cared.
The act of kindness lasted much longer than the food.
–Josh Gierman, Vancouver
