Love Thy Neighbor: Annual fundraiser in local newspaper

LOVE THY NEIGHBOR:  Clergy seek donations for Food & Fuel Fund

by  Mark E.  Rondeau, religion editor, The Bennington Banner

Published   Saturday, September 6

BENNINGTON — Members of the local interfaith community organization want to raise consciousness of, and funds to alleviate, the critical needs some people are facing at a time when fuel and food costs have risen sharply. During this weekend, clergy and laypeople in the Greater Bennington Area Interfaith Council will be speaking to their congregations about local needs and the council's Emergency Food and Fuel Fund.

The fund has been around since 1973 and was created in response to the oil embargo at that time. Local clergy decided to pool their resources to help those in need. Last year, the fund raised almost $52,000 and distributed the whole amount back to the community, said Sue Andrews, a member of the Bennington Unitarian Universalist Fellowship who coordinates the fund.

Andrews and six other members of the Interfaith Council came to the Banner on Tuesday in an effort to raise consciousness about local need and the fund. The Rev. Jerrod Hugenot, minister of First Baptist Church, said they were trying "to raise the concerns we have for those in our community who are in critical need. And with the fuel prices we already know too well are going to be through the roof in comparison even to last year, we're hopeful that our community as a whole will support everyone through our fund."

Said Rabbi Joshua Boettiger, of Congregation Beth El, "We're talking about the most basic fundamental needs. We're talking about the Food and Fuel Fund being really the last safety net for people who fall through the cracks with the other social agencies in town. ... It's always tight, and so we're gearing up. People have been using the word 'crisis' and anticipating a crisis.  "We had just sent out our annual fund-raising letter, and we're hoping from the pulpit, from the bima, to speak to this need and kind of raise the profile of what the Food and Fuel Fund is," he said.

Said Bain Davis, of the Bennington Society of Friends (Quakers), "Every one of our faith communities has a self-story that we are not only about being faithful people, but we are also a serving people. And that self-story needs to sometimes be pushed a little further to the surface."

Requests for support from the fund, which can come directly from people in need or from referrals from local social service agencies, indicate that need will be particularly heavy this winter. "We have had more requests for food this summer than we have ever had in the past," Andrews said. "So if we're having those kinds of requests in the summer, when heating costs are not significant, it's hard to imagine what it's going to be like in the winter."

Last year, about 60 percent of the fund went to support such housing needs as rent, mortgages, security deposits and utility bills. Another 25 percent went to food, household necessities and prescriptions. A smaller percentage went to transitional housing for the homeless. Starting last year, a portion of the fund goes for a stipend for the part-time manger's position.

The fund is seeking monetary donations. Working with such organizations as the state Agency of Human Services and BROC, the fund is able to leverage the funds it collects into more money, Andrews said.

"We all need to look out for our brothers, and if you're in a low-income situation, maybe you can only give a dollar. But you're giving. And I think that's what we hope people will do," she said. At a local crisis team meeting she attended recently, those attending were "concerned about people actually dying in their homes because of lack of fuel. It's going to be that serious a situation."

The problem will not just be the burden of a cold snap over a few days, but people at risk over the whole winter of not having enough fuel to heat their homes — and not enough money for food, or housing, either.

However, Andrews has gone on record that the Emergency Food and Fuel Fund will not be able to pay everyone's bills.

"There are just not enough resources. But there's another whole issue here ... and that is getting people to think about how do they change their behaviors. How do they conserve. How do you prepare for the winter when you know it's going to be this hard," she said. "There's not a person among us who shouldn't have a special savings account for fuel over the summer, but my guess is that very few people actually do that. And especially people in the lower-income situations are people putting away $5, $10, $ 50 dollars a week for that $1,000 fuel bill that's going to happen."

Rev. Anita Schell-Lambert, pastor of St. Peter's Episcopal Church, said that stories in the Bible talk about the miracles that can occur when people pull together and think creatively. "We can do more together than we can do individually," she said. "But it does mean not only more money but it means sacrifices on every person's part and it also means pooling resources, and not just financial resources, but places to stay."

Schell-Lambert spoke of a weatherization workshop coming up to teach people to better insulate their homes and use less so that there will be enough for everyone. "It's not just giving money, but it's changed behavior and thinking how we can work together, partnership with all the different agencies in town." The workshop, organized by the Bennington Energy Committee, will be held on Saturday, Sept. 27, from 1 to 5 p.m. at St. Peter's.

In another initiative, the Food and Fuel Fund is also seeking adult mentors: "We're looking for adult mentors who could pair up one-on-one with people who are in tough financial situations who are at risk basically of losing their housing because of their financial situation," Andrews said. The mentor will be a person with significant life experience, including the practical and financial management of a household. Mentors will take part in a three-session training in September and October. Those interested should call Andrews at 802-379-0149 or e-mail her at sue.andrews@comcast.net.

Donations to the fund may be sent to: Food and Fuel Fund, c/o Congregation Beth El, 107 Adams St., Bennington VT 05201. The Interfaith Council is a 501(c)3 organization and contributions are tax deductible.