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Show Hunger reaches all aspects of society by N.L. Westminster sponsors Sub for Santa by Cara Cahoon Several charity projects are in progress at Westminster, all of which involve a form of substitution for Santa, according to the Stu- dent Life Committee. ' The project entitled Sub for Santa is under the direction of Jackie Haus, student life advi- ir sor, and Karla Joost, student life to the Westminster Haus, person. According community may give donations in the form of money deposited in the Sub for Santa banks; or in the form of food, clothing, or small gifts. All that is collected will go to families in need at Christmas time. Members of the Student Life Committee divide donations according to each family's needs. They substitute for Santa as they bring Christmas to the family, said Joost. sub-cha- . -- Donations exceeding the familys needs will be given to shelters for the homeless and to local soup kitchens according to Haus. All the food will go where it is needed, Haus said. - The Utah Students Association is also sponsoring a statewide food drive which includes Westminster. Each college or university is responsible for contributing one can of food per student, thus Westminster will donate approximately 1700 cans of food, said Haus. Sub for Santa donations will also go towards this project, as will excess donations received at the Sadie Hawkins Dance sponsored by ASWC officers in November. Recent budget cuts on the national level have decreased the number of outreach programs to the more rural areas of the state. But at the same time the unemployment rate in and around small towns is rising. The jobless in San Juan County alone constitute 25. However, poverty and the resulting hunger isnt just a rural problem. Even though Utah doesnt have large urban ghettos like New York City or Chicago, hunger can be very deceptive. The number of poor and hungry in Utah continues to grow every year while government Spackman If a society is judged by how it takes care of those that cant care for themselves, then Utah is neglectful. Thats how Steve Blackman of Utahns Against Hunger would illustrate the problem of hunger in Utah. Blackman, Special Projects Coordinator, said that recent statistics show there are more than 200,000 people in Utah living below the poverty level. . Yearly income for a family of four is considered at poverty level when its $12,000 or less. This is th group known as the working poor. Shelter and food are the basic necessities of life, but some families cant manage even those. Some may think that Utahs hungry are just the transient and homeless, but they can also include the handicapped or elderly. Blackman said that for many elderly the choice may. sometimes have to be made between heating their home or eating. But of the 200,000 Utahns at the poverty level, over half are children. programs available in Utah, according to UAH, are not enough to alleviate the problem. houseOne program available to holds is Food Stamps. Coupons are redeemable for food items at grocery stores, but a meager 484 per person per meal is the average amount low-inco- To alleviate some of the problems low-inco- families share, Blackman said that the long term solution lies in child care, job training and image enhancement. Child care is a major expense. It can also for someone to work at mini- self-defeati- mum wage and then pay a babysitter most of that wage. If more child care programs were provided for the poor, more of them could reach their goal of perRequiring an unskilled or son to find a job can also be a futile effort. Without proper training, the jobs are few and wages are low. Because the welfare system can be from one generation to another, Blackman sees image enhancement as a natural combination with job training. A persons h is not increased by being on welfare. Food stamps alone have such a stigma that some people do their food shopping in towns several miles away to avoid dealing with their neighbors. Being hungry shouldnt be a reason for shame. By helping the poor to project a instead of a negative one, valuable they could ultimately give themselves reason self-relianc- e. non-educat- ed allocated. Another government subsidized plan is the school lunch program available on a free or reduced-price- d basis for elementary and high school students from families. In spite of the increased use of these government programs, the Salt Lake county Food Pantries have realized almost a doubling in the amount of food packets given out since last year. Food pantries throughout Utah provide food on an emergency basis for up to three . days. These pantries are mostly dependent on for credence. donations from the communities in which they are located. If people are taught the importance of being and the public in Utah could In the past, donations given to the pantries of the plight of 200,000 felconscious become during the Thanksgiving and Christmas low Utahns, the poor and hungry could live a days would last most of the year. But the life of dignity and become useful, productive increased demand on the pantries has now of Utah society. members made their supplies insufficient. now and then, and Blackman feels that through public aware-;-, . Everyone hits hard times is welfare the designed to give help system ness and legislature lobbying the funding needed. But when its right here and now in food drives can gain strength. Part of are there Utah, hungry. the battle UAH fights every day is to eliminate misconceptions the Utah public may have Increasing the interactions between the about who is poor and hungry in their state. haves and the have nots, said Blackman, Although UAH sees some abuses within the would help create a final solution. system, they also find what Blackman call dis ng self-wort- Utahs tendency toward large families is only part of the problem. Utah incomes are low-inco- under 80 of the national average and ranks 48 nationwide per capita. Still, some Utahns tend to balk at the thought of seeking public assistance. The L.D.S. Churchs influence is shown throughout the state by Utahs people being t. The work ethic i3 proud and Mormons are taught from an and felt strongly on not to rely government hand-outearly age The L.D.S. Church also has its own welfare self-conce- self-relian- pt k self-sufficie- s. ' system. incentives. The idea that working at all will completely take away any assistance results in the perpetuation of the Welfare system. One way to mitigate the issue is by assessing the programs on an individual need basis. The last statistics released by the church, according to Blackman, show that they have helped over 80,000 people worldwide. The L.D.S. Church has also donated considerably to Utah's Food Banks and the St. Vincentde Paul Center. The L.D.S. Church participates in Hunger Sabbath, a day when local churches reflect and act upon hunger in Utah. But in spite of this effort 200,000 people in Utah are still struggling. for-pant- . ai Sub for Santa donations began Dec. 1 and will continue through Dec. 18. Donations may be left in the Dean of Students Office, the snack bar or the Sub for Santa cans around campus. Every little bit helps, said Joost as she encouraged the Westminster community to give to this cause. Another type of substitution for Santa is under the direction of student LaDawn Haglund. She is accepting donations of gifts, especially for adolsecents, in the Academic Support office and Hogle Hall. . Haglund started the project on her own last year. If you can help someone else who needs it, why not? she said. The new gifts she receives will go to the Detention Center in Salt Lake City, but the Detention Center only accepts new items. The used items Haglund receives will go to the Guadalupe Center, Social Services Department, or to local thrift stores. xs. W V Special Christmas Issue V v V v - x Xs . V', ' .'X'Cv i' X Vv ' fi v F .K i ' '.t . ; 777 - 'S " S. SS' Ph J ; , ,4 r ' Jc 1300 East 682-492- 1 (t r fi S. Sail LaM City , ) J V ' 'V' x. f I i CHRISTMAS " p'(? EVE WORSHIP 7 00 PM FAMILY SERVICE 4. y & flOOPM V it I v 4 A ; Haglund said she is very happy about the response to her project, especially for the new gifts donated. By Dec. 2 of this year, she said she had already received more donations than she did during all of last years endeavor. She will be accepting contributions until the school closes for Christmas. vN ;4 ? ; Y .. D , 9nri,; ;r AKjAWMI Child CANDLELIGHT SERVICE Care Available tJhm, The Christmas tree in Syme Lounge was donated by the business club and campus life. It will be given to the family. Although the tree was vandalized, the culprits turned themselves in and will redecorate the tree. Perhaps the sign should say, Christmas is Sub-for-San- ta Forum 3 . |