Thousands of working poor get assistance

Despite economic ups and downs during the past three years, about the same number of poor people sought help from the Christmas Bureau each December, according to Catholic Charities officials.

Thousands of recipients at the bureau are working poor who continue to have at least part-time jobs even during economic downturns and often remain in minimum-wage jobs during economic booms.

“We have come to be supportive of the working poor by reaching out to a group that’s struggling to make ends meet even though they are working,” said Christmas Bureau director Carol Speltz. “The $40 food voucher, for a family of four, won’t change their lives. We know that. But they can go home with a really nice toy for each child and enough money to buy Christmas dinner.”

The Spokesman-Review partners with Catholic Charities and the Volunteers of America in the operation of the Christmas Bureau, which opens Dec. 8 at the Spokane County Fair & Expo Center. Catholic Charities maintains the database of statistics collected at the bureau.

In 2005 and 2006, more than 31,000 poor people each year were given the fixings of Christmas – a grocery store voucher to buy a holiday meal and new toys and books for the children – at the bureau.

The Spokesman-Review Christmas Fund pays for the vouchers and toys with generous donations from the community.

Each fall, a committee from the newspaper, Catholic Charities and Volunteers of America sets the goal for the Christmas Fund by estimating the amount that will be needed to pay the bills. The consistent number of families served by the bureau allows the committee to accurately set the goal, again $485,000 this year.

More than half of the Christmas Fund goes toward the food vouchers – about $284,000 last year. The remainder pays for the 16,000 toys given to poor children.

Most of the nearly 10,000 poor families that came to the bureau last year live in Spokane, although no one who has proof of need is turned away by the charity. Last year a handful of families from Seattle, Tacoma, Kelso, the Tri-Cities and Moses Lake were served by the charity, most of which were in Spokane visiting relatives for the holidays. Nearly 100 families were homeless.

But of the families helped with their Christmas celebrations, more than 4,500 lived in the Hillyard, Logan, West Central and Shadle neighborhoods. Most of the other families lived in the communities surrounding Spokane: West Plains, Spokane Valley, Liberty Lake, Whitworth, Mead, Veradale, Greenacres and Dishman. Dozens more families came from Washington communities such as Cheney, Marshall, Tum Tum, Elk, Chattaroy, Newman Lake, Espanola, Spangle, Sprague Lake, Colbert, Springdale and Deer Lake. Families from Idaho towns such as Athol, Osburn, Post Falls, Worley and Dalton Gardens also came to the bureau.

People who come to the bureau for help must provide proof of need, such as a state medical coupon or subsidized heat or rent bill; proof of the number of people living at their address; and the ages of their children. They are also asked to estimate their monthly income. The information is used only to track trends so bureau organizers can better predict the number of toys needed for each age group, and to set the Christmas Fund goal.

Records are also not kept on donors to the Christmas Fund. When the accounting is completed in January, the names and addresses of donors are safely discarded and donors can be assured their information is not shared with any other organization nor used to solicit donations in the future.

The Christmas Fund and Christmas Bureau are among the most successful Christmas charities of their kind in the country, and among the most simple. The only means used to solicit donations is daily stories in The Spokesman-Review between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The donations pay for the food vouchers and toys.

It’s simply a generous community’s Christmas gift to its poor.

Donations totaling $1,655 bumped the Christmas Fund to $36,525. Many more are needed to reach the goal. Donations of all amounts are welcome.

Following are the most recent donations and their donors:

An anonymous donor from Hayden Lake, Idaho, sent $500.

An anonymous donor from Spokane sent $250.

Larene Haberman, of Spokane, sent $150.

Paul Grubb donated $106.51 via PayPal.

The Schaller family, of Spokane, sent $100 and a note to the Christmas Bureau volunteers: “You do a wonderful job for the needy of Spokane. Your efforts are very much appreciated.”

Tom and Elaine, of Spokane, brought $100 to the newspaper in memory of their parents.

William McCluskey donated $96.80 via PayPal, as did Laura Lorentz, and Jonathan French, of Norfolk, Va.

James and Muriel Tuttle, of Spokane, sent $50.

Gordon Radford donated $28.83 via PayPal.

Marilyn Bauer, of Spokane, donated $20.

Gail Baldridge, of Spokane Valley, donated $19.12 via PayPal, as did Joseph Funk, of Sandpoint, Idaho, and Barry Barfield.