— from Eleanor Hoague —
We have all been enduring the very real hardships placed on us by the Coronavirus pandemic. Our interactions with other people have been severely limited; we have lost the opportunity to go to sporting or artistic events, or to enjoy a good restaurant meal; in short, we have been missing out on a normal life.
This is true for all of us. But for the many in our community who are not earning any money, these difficulties pale in comparison to the crisis caused by not being able to pay for food or rent/mortgage, heat or electricity.
Fortunately, there is assistance available on Orcas, and for the past week, I have been helping some of our unemployed friends and neighbors apply for it. Providers of assistance include, among others:
- Orcas Food Bank and Orcas Community Resource Center, who are providing free food and other necessities
- OPALCO, providing assistance with electric bills
- OPAL, providing assistance with paying or postponing rent and mortgages.
The people I am talking to are not lazy. They are diligently staying home in order to follow the COVID-19 protocols, but they are not earning any money. Imagine that: no income.
“We are in this together.” This meme has gained traction recently, but if it is more than just a feel-good saying, then we need to act now. If you are living on a shoestring or less, ignore this plea, but if you are a little more comfortably off, I hope that you will read on and take action.
The Orcas Island Community Fund (OICF) is raising money right now to support the community organizations that are serving the unemployed. Donations to OICF’s Community Emergency Response Fund (CERF) are being distributed weekly to those organizations that are in immediate need of the funds. Thank goodness OICF is there.
Now, let’s provide the funds for them to work with.
To make a contribution to the fund, please click here and donate …. generously. IF WE WANT WORKERS TO BE THERE WHEN WE NEED THEM, THEN WE MUST BE THERE FOR THEM NOW.
Thanks for a very timely article, Elly. As usual, you are right in the thick of helping people. I would like to just add that as many of us who are not on a shoestring receive our stimulus money, we might think about contributing some or all of that money to the organizations who are helping people get by. And you can use it to purchase meals from the food providers who are surviving by providing meals to go.
Thank you for the kind words and good thoughts. This community is indeed stepping up! The Community Emergency Response Fund has already distributed $291,500 in the last 4 weeks. These funds are helping keep neighbors fed, sheltered, and safe. We are also encouraging our nonprofit partners to use these funds to support local business and workers when they can. By locally sourcing bread, the Food Bank was able to keep three bakers employed. The Shelter Task Force is purchasing as much as they can locally to outfit the Host sites (creating a shelter and a place for our homeless residents). Community support of the CER Fund ensures that we can continue to meet the rising needs of this community and come through this crisis stronger than ever. 100% of every donated dollar goes to help, OICF does not charge a dime to administer this fund. Keep it up, Orcas!