Imagine another sleepless night, shivering in a cold bed without a clean, warm blanket.
Some people in the community will go to bed tonight without the basic warmth and comfort of a blanket and it will affect their ability to work, learn, and stay healthy.
MADISON — Gayle Westfahl, the District Council of Madison Society of St. Vincent de Paul’s member services coordinator, has been recognized by the International Society of St. Vincent de Paul with the 2016 Founders’ Award for her work with Dane County youth and leading efforts to grow youth involvement in the society around the globe.
Each year, the award is presented to only six youth or young adults from around the world, one on each continent.
Which would you rather hear first, the good news or the bad news?
When it comes to homelessness in Wisconsin, let’s talk about the good news first.
According to the latest report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the number of homeless people in Wisconsin has decreased. In one category — homeless and unsheltered veterans — Wisconsin has one of the lowest rates in the country at 3.6 percent.
First in a series on the Madison Area Food Pantry Gardens.
MADISON — Every Saturday during the growing season, they would meet on the Capital Square in downtown Madison before 12 noon, farmers’ market gleaners seeking fresh produce the vendors didn’t sell: some fruit but mostly vegetables for food pantries serving the poor.
First in a series on the Madison Area Food Pantry Gardens.
MADISON — The Society of St. Vincent de Paul has Dane County’s largest food pantry.
In its last fiscal year, the pantry served 20,577 families, providing food valued at $1,445,325.
Hosted by trained volunteers, the customer choice food pantry offers customers the opportunity to shop once a month for everyday staples such as flour and oil, select from fresh produce — some from the society’s own Lacy Food Pantry Garden — and choose from a wide array of culturally appropriate and healthy foods.
Nothing brings comfort on a cold winter night like snuggling under a warm blanket for a good night’s sleep. Unfortunately, not everyone in our community has a clean, warm blanket to call his or her own.
As a line of people formed outside the St. Vincent de Paul Dig & Save store on S. Park St., the warm autumn day clashed with what was on everyone’s mind — coats, especially for winter.
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| Blessed Sacrament School in Madison second grader Jayden Wijeyakulasuriya leaps joyfully past the church during the school’s recent Hunger March. (Catholic Herald photo/Kevin Wondrash) |
MADISON — “Show an Attitude of Gratitude.”
That is the theme this school year at Blessed Sacrament School in Madison.
That is the reason more than 60 first, second, and third graders laced up their running shoes and ran or walked around the school block as many times as they could.
The occasion was the annual Hunger March held recently.
For almost 40 years, the march has been an opportunity for students to make the Catholic values they learn part of their everyday lives.
In recent years, the Hunger March has helped many people both locally and globally.
Proceeds from the march have gone to building a well in Africa, helping a family secure the first month’s rent of an apartment, helping Our Lady of Hope Clinic in Madison — a non-profit medical group that provides primary care services to the uninsured, as well as donating to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.
Prior to the march, the students asked parents, family members, friends, and neighbors to pledge money per lap they completed.
As the 9 a.m. start time rolled around and the inspirational music played, the students finished their stretches and warm-ups and got ready for lap number one.
The students walked as a group for the first lap.
As they completed that lap, the students busted through a Hunger March banner and then some took off running as if they’d been waiting all day to do so.
As we look forward to celebrating Mother’s Day on Sunday, May 10, it is an opportunity to reflect on motherhood.
Motherhood is something we take for granted. After all, we wouldn’t be here if our mothers didn’t give us life. Yet, motherhood is not a given in society today, especially in our country.
In 2012, I wrote in my “Editor’s View” column that the number of births in the United States had been dropping. Is that trend continuing?
Yes, it is! In checking on statistics for births, I found that our country continues to experience a decline in births. The last statistics I found cover the number of births for the 12-month period ending in June of 2013. That number was 3,932,181, down from the count of 3,952,841 in 2012. This continues the decline in the number of births from the all-time high of 4,316,233 in 2007.
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It’s happened again. The number of abortions in Wisconsin has dropped for the fifth straight year. Nine of the last 10 years have seen a decline in abortions in our state, making Wisconsin one of the most pro-life states in the nation, according to some commentators.
The state Department of Health Services reported that 6,462 abortions were performed last year, down from 6,927 the previous year and about 2,000 less than the 8,500 Wisconsin had in 2009.
“Today is a fantastic news day for Wisconsin women and children,” said Heather Weininger, executive director of Wisconsin Right to Life, when the report was released.
“Our steep abortion decline continues with the release of 2013 abortion numbers which reveal there were 465 fewer abortions in 2013 than in 2012. This represents a 6.7 percent decrease in one year.”
Weininger added, “We are extremely grateful for each and every woman who gives life to her child and each unborn child saved from the violence of abortion. Wisconsin Right to Life will vigorously continue its multi-faceted programs which work to fuel the decline.”
