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Addressing needs

This community has the resources to provide our neighbors the essentials

Many Durangoans living well within society’s margins are still digesting Thanksgiving meals this week – perhaps tossing leftovers into garbage disposals or to the family dog – and turning their attention to this month’s holiday plans. Gift purchases, travel arrangements and meal planning tend to dominate the agendas of those in the middle class and beyond. But there is a large and growing segment of our local population – endemic of a state- and nationwide trend – whose priorities are oriented around more basic needs, and how to meet them. As a community of disparate means, those with abundance – both institutions and individuals – can and ought to help those without.

There is an excellent support network established in Durango to provide assistance to those in need: the Volunteers of America Durango Community Shelter puts a roof over 500 heads a year for people who would otherwise be sleeping outdoors or in cars; Manna Soup Kitchen served nearly 70,500 meals in 2014; the Durango Food Bank distributed the makings of 450,000 meals last year – and demand has risen 13 percent in 2015. The Salvation Army, whose bell-ringing soldiers collected $120,000 in 2103, distributes funds to help individuals and families in need through the Community Emergency Assistance Coalition, among other conduits that provide aid. Despite this network, there are clearly fewer resources than the demand requires.

Durango’s high cost of housing, combined with its notoriously low wages, fuel the dynamic, but the community’s relative affluence can help mitigate it. The Durango Food Bank has the capacity to serve more hungry Durangoans, but cannot do so without an increase in space – at least double its current 2,000 square feet, according to Sarah Smith, the Food Bank’s director. Doing that will require a community investment that is worth making – indeed it is essential. It can be done creatively, though, and in collaboration with the loosely knit network of entities and individuals committed to serving the community’s needy. The city of Durango and La Plata County must be part of answering the need – for space, resources and advocacy to address hunger and homelessness. The faith community, too, is an instrumental player in providing care for vulnerable individuals.

The key is coordinating resources – both existing and those that are untapped. As the holiday season begins, the Durango community can commit itself to answering the growing need for food and shelter among its residents. That should rise to the top of the region’s holiday to-do list – both among institutions and individuals. Give to the bell-ringers; donate to the food bank; volunteer at the soup kitchen. And for the decision-makers and organizations dedicated to assisting those in need, the season offers an opportunity to increase coordination efforts and resources to strengthen the community’s safety net that provides essentials for a growing number of Durango residents. A dedicated commitment to increasing housing options and keeping families fed through the holidays and into 2016 would serve the community in a meaningful and needed way. Perhaps a coordinated effort to find and fund a larger space for the Durango Food Bank is a concrete and actionable first step. From there, we can turn to addressing the factors causing the growing need.



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