College students love to tell jokes about how poor they are. They laugh about eating nothing but Roman Noodles and ketchup, hitting their families up for money and digging for change between the couch cushions in order to come up with rent. But how many college students have actually known what it means to go hungry?
The answer is not many. Yet such hunger is the grim reality for many individuals and families, along with some college students, right here in Salt Lake City.
Fortunately, there are such groups as Crossroads Urban Center, a non-profit organization that provides food and services for the hungry in Salt Lake City. Utah’s capital city has more hungry people than many would assume. The amount of families requiring Crossroads’ service increased 30 percent last year. And the recent recession is among many problems that contribute to hunger.
Crossroads tries to attack such social ills at the roots in addition to addressing the surface symptoms. So while Crossroads provides emergency food relief for those who can’t eat (up to six times a year per household), it also fights for living wages, among other things.
A full-time, minimum-wage job does not pay enough to keep a family above the poverty line. Indeed, most of the people who get emergency provisions from Crossroads have jobs and places to live. They just can’t seem to make ends meet.
To make matters worse, the wonderful, U service-based-learning programs that often provide volunteers for Crossroads during the school year leave a big void during the summer months.
If you have any spare time at all, consider volunteering for Crossroads, especially during the tight summer months. If you are among the lucky who have enough food, consider donating food items, clothing and/or money to help Crossroads continue to help others. Who knows, the next person to need emergency help may be you.
Crossroads Urban Center is located at 347 S. 400 East. Bring food to that location, or contact Linda Hilton at 364-7765 or [email protected] if you are interested in volunteering.