Catching Those in Free-Fall
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!! PLEASE READ CAREFULLY!
Dear Friends of Help Now!:
This Holiday Season you can do something government cannot.
More people are falling through our society’s safety net every day—here in southern Oregon and across the nation. Government funded social services are being cut back everywhere due to diminishing or deficit budgets at all levels of government. Many non-profits are laying off staff and reducing services due to decreased funding in this economy and their dependence on government support. Unfortunately, this situation is only going to worsen in the foreseeable future.
What happens to people who lose services that have been their lifeline? Those people are not in front of us every day so most of us just go on with our daily lives. We might feel bad knowing those who face cuts will struggle more, but what’s happening to them doesn’t directly affect us. Further, the poor, the uneducated, and the disabled are not a force within our political system meaning their needs can more readily be ignored or even sacrificed in government cost-cutting measures.
Jim Hays, one of our newest volunteers, is a Rogue Valley native. For many years, Jim worked as an operation research analyst with the US Forest Service retiring from that work in 2008. During his tenure with the Forest Service, he helped create the first Rogue River National Forest Land and Resource Management Plan. Since retiring, Jim has volunteered at ACCESS, Maslow Project, and the Medford Senior Center where he also serves on the Board of Directors and manages the Bingo program. Jim is a graduate of Southern Oregon University. He is also a dedicated musician and singer.