Vashon Verité

A candid slice of Island life, from short feature digests to guess-where snapshots.

“Need Food”

June 4th, 2010 at Fri, 4th, 2010 at 1:51 pm by heidiskrzypek

Passerby chatting with one of a couple recent sign-holders

I’m intrigued. I’ll bite. But I’m not about to get preachy. Having lived in cities with massive homeless and hungry populations (San Diego, San Fransicso, and Honolulu), I’ve passed many a cardboard sign in my day unfazed. But on Vashon? Fazed. And two on the same day? Conspiracy theorist fazed!

The vignette: One older, sun-defending woman (long sleeves and cap on one of 2010’s sunniest days yet!) soliciting for food at the town center bus stop(s). One younger brunette in her 20s, advertising via cardboard she’s pregnant and hungry. Then the -VashonAll- list serve tales about a young woman with a sob story “borrowing” a bike that never was returned to its well meaning seller.
It is rotten to be hungry. I have been hungry as a child, ironically, in a very upscale community.
On Vashon, there are some amazing outreach agencies that feed the disadvantaged almost in a perfect rhythm to keep them sated daily. The community is so giving. I hope these very public faces of need find what they need to transition to self sufficiency. It saddens me that a few people are being taken for a ride–by design. Please give to the outreach agencies on the island if your intuition tells you something smells rotten in Denmark.

 

Not something you see often on Vashon: the cardboard sign

heidiskrzypek Island mom and wife. Gainfully employed Seattle copywriter. Vashon forager. Emerging swimmer. Fan of dancehall reggae, good cooking, shallow reality TV shows, and public radio.

More articles by heidiskrzypek >
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