2019 As holidays loom, need in Bucks is great

You can help your neighbors by supporting Give A Christmas, the charitable holiday drive run by The Intelligencer and the Bucks County Opportunity Council. All donations go to local families in need.

Income has gone up and poverty rates have gone down in Bucks County, but those numbers have not erased the ongoing need for homeless, hungry and low-income residents. The county’s human services budget continues to increase, and local non-profits are assisting more individuals and families than ever.

“Our numbers go up each year as more people come in with an array of issues trying to overcome the barriers for sustainable housing,” said Nicki Bedesem, director of communications for Family Service Association of Bucks County. “Our costs go up as well as we add more services and work to meet all their needs.”

The holidays are a particularly difficult time for those in need, but there are ways to help.

For more than 30 years, the community has stepped up to help, donating $3 million to The Intelligencer’s Give A Christmas initiative.

Administered by the Bucks County Opportunity Council, with 10% of the proceeds shared with the Keystone Opportunity Center, the fund provides financial assistance to individuals and families in need during the holidays.

Benefiting in-need locals in Central and Upper Bucks County, as well as Eastern Montgomery County and the North Penn and Indian Valley communities, the fund provides a variety of assistance. That includes everything from help with buying gifts and groceries, to paying rent, medicine bills and utility expenses.

But the need is great year-round, social services agencies say.

FSA has assisted 479 people, including 172 children, at its shelter — the only 24/7 shelter serving individuals, children and families — between July 2018 and June 2019. The organization also provides numerous services out of its Bristol, Langhorne and Quakertown offices, including drug and alcohol treatment, mental health and wellness programs and medical case management for HIV and AIDS patients.

Combined, the organization has assisted 7,052 people in Bucks County in the last fiscal year ended June 30. It’s a number that goes up each year, regardless of the county’s demographic numbers.

The U.S. Census Bureau recorded a 6.1% poverty level in Bucks County for 2017, down from 6.6% in 2016. The bureau’s latest American Community Survey also shows the county’s median income went up 5% to $88,569 from $84,749. Additionally, the county’s annual homeless count held each January showed a 9.6% decrease from 2018 to 359 people.

The needs of the at-risk population have not gone away, however, with about 50,000 in Bucks County who are food insecure, 34% of which are children, according to numbers provided by the Bucks County Opportunity Council. The county also has approximately 38,000 people at or below the poverty threshold, or $24,750 household income for a family of four.

Bucks County’s Department of Housing and Human Services has seen its budget go up each year as it provides services to the county’s most vulnerable. The department’s preliminary 2020 expenses have gone up 4.4% from 2018, to $93.16 million. This year’s increase can mostly be attributed to regular increases in staff salaries and cost of services and not a sudden spike in the needy population, said Christina Finello, deputy director for the housing and human services department.

Bucks County’s social service agencies have become more efficient and better coordinated to handle the needs of the homeless and low-income population. Erin Lukoss, executive director of the Bucks County Opportunity Council, reached that conclusion in light of numbers showing decreased poverty in the county but an increase in the number of people assisted by organizations like the BCOC and FSA.

“What we are definitely seeing is more people doing a better job marketing and coordinating services,” said Lukoss from her Doylestown office. “In the past, someone would make five or six phone calls, and if they didn’t get anywhere they would move on or just give up. Now, all of the organizations are working together much better and more effectively to make referrals. We’ve become better at helping people.”

Lukoss and her team at BCOC work to keep the generosity of Give A Christmas thriving year-round to supplement the revenue from local, state and federal sources.

“The government funding helps us achieve our primary goals,” Lukoss said. “If we need to help somebody move into housing, government funding is the perfect match. There are limits on what we can use that funding, though. Private funding is where we can be more creative and think outside the box.”

2019 Give A Christmas: Give back locally on giving Tuesday

Giving Tuesday is a time to remember your neighbors in need.

Right now in Bucks County, there’s a single mother who can’t afford to keep the lights on. There’s a homeless veteran shivering in the cold, in need of shelter and a leg up to start anew. There’s a woman struggling to find the strength to leave an abusive relationship.

These are just a sampling of the unpleasant realities that local nonprofits confront every day. More importantly, they’re the realities these organizations combat against, working tirelessly to transform the sad situations into stories of hope and, with a little luck, happy endings.

Still, it takes community support for area nonprofits to execute their missions. For many, charitable donations — be they money, volunteer service and/or tangible products — from individuals, families and businesses are essential.

And with Giving Tuesday nearly here, now is the perfect time for the community to step up and deliver what these charities desperately need.

Giving Tuesday, or #GivingTuesday as it’s often stylized to encourage social media exposure, falls on the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving — Dec. 3 this year. The 92Y, a New York City-based nonprofit, conceived the idea. In collaboration with the United Nations Foundation, 92Y launched the holiday in 2012.

Giving Tuesday’s purpose is simple yet profound: Encourage people to set aside the commercialism of Black Friday, Cyber Monday and the like, and return to the true spirit of the holiday season by donating money, time and/or goods to charities and nonprofits.

The holiday’s purpose has found increasing success. In 2012, more than 2,500 nonprofits participated, which generated about $10 million in online fundraising, according to a Fast Company report. In 2017, giving totaled at least as high as $300 million, according to transaction data from online giving platforms and payment processors like PayPal, Blackbaud, and Facebook.

“We see a surge of donations on Giving Tuesday,” said Nicki Bedesem, director of communications at Middletown-based Family Service Association of Bucks County, a nonprofit that helps the homeless. “We run specific email and social media campaigns on Giving Tuesday, so people can easily click to donate. We receive donations from community members that are designated toward a specific program or project.”

Family Service Association is just one of the area organizations that locals can support. Another initiative to consider is the Give A Christmas Fund run by The Intelligencer. Administered by the Bucks County Opportunity Council, the fund delivers financial assistance to individuals and families in need during the holidays.

Ten percent of donated funds are shared with the Souderton-based Keystone Opportunity Council; together with the BCOC, they benefit folks in Central and Upper Bucks County, as well as Eastern Montgomery County and the North Penn and Indian Valley communities. Support includes everything from help with buying gifts and groceries, to paying for rent, medicine, bills and utility expenses.

“All of the funds raised through Give A Christmas go directly to local families and individuals,” said Tammy B. Schoonover, BCOC’s director of community services. “The generosity, care, and concern of the readers is incredibly impactful. Every donation is meaningful. Every donation makes a difference in someone’s life.”

That includes folks like 14-year-old Mike, his 10-year-old brother and their grandmother. The grandmother is the full-time caretaker of the boys. Bad breaks led the family to be evicted from their duplex. Unable to find a place they could afford, the family ended up “couch-surfing” for several months, with the boys often sleeping on floors. That changed when they came to the Keystone Opportunity Center, which helped situate the family in a home of their own.

“The support we receive on Giving Tuesday — and throughout the holiday season — enables us to help fight homelessness, hunger and barriers to education in Montgomery and Bucks counties,” said Malcolm Friend, director of resource development at Keystone Opportunity Center.

Other local nonprofits say Giving Tuesday provides a platform for increased support — support that gets translated into do-gooding.

Sometimes, the generosity is more hands-on than financial, and that’s fine with some organizations, such as Big Brothers Big Sisters of Bucks County.

“We’ve had several companies donate their time to do projects, such as paint and make minor repairs, to the Victorian-era home that we’re based in,” said Sharon A. McCoy, customer relations specialist/community relations coordinator at Big Brothers Big Sisters of Bucks County, which provides for one-to-one mentoring relationships between adults and youth.

McCoy continued: “We’ve also had individuals who have helped with office work or mailings, or who’ve created and supplied materials for a craft or other activities. We have a business that donates and assembles children’s bikes, which we distribute during the holidays.”

Elsewhere, the Doylestown-based Travis Manion Foundation has created a 2019 Giving Tuesday campaign that’s geared toward funding a Survivor Expedition, which involves several families of fallen military members coming together to serve a community in need as a way to honor the legacy of their late loved ones.

“We see an increase in donations around Giving Tuesday. We’ve taken Giving Tuesday and used it as a way for us to kick off our end-of-year giving,” said Derrick Morgan, director of marketing for the foundation, which aims to empower veterans and families of fallen military heroes to develop character in future generations.

A Woman’s Place, a Doylestown Township-headquartered nonprofit that provides free and private services to people experiencing domestic violence in Bucks County, said that the Giving Tuesday donations it receives are usually under $5,000, often falling in the range of $25 to $100. Still, “gifts made on Giving Tuesday are often from new donors, or are a second gift from those who donate a larger amount at another time of year,” said Rita G. Brouwer-Ancher, AWP’s director of development.

Furthermore, the significance of Giving Tuesday goes beyond dollars and cents for A Woman’s Place. This year, AWP is doing an email blast that offers details about all of its programs. “Giving Tuesday gives us an excellent opportunity to tell our story,” said Brouwer-Ancher. “It offers AWP another touch point to current and latent donors. The day’s impact is felt in the opportunity to share AWP’s story, in union with hundreds of other non-profits throughout the country.”

Said Morgan: “Giving Tuesday is a great resource for the nonprofit community because it reminds the public that the holidays aren’t just about buying the hot new item for someone on your list, but are really about keeping the ‘giving’ in the season of giving.”

 

2019 Give A Christmas partners deliver holiday spirit of giving year round

Over the past 30 years, Intelligencer readers have contributed more than $3 million to help families in need. We’re once again asking for your generosity to support the Give A Christmas campaign.

A hand-up and hope for a better future — those are the gifts the Bucks County Opportunity Council (BCOC) and Keystone Opportunity Center are delivering to in-need locals this holiday season.

Still, for these community-focused nonprofits, the giving doesn’t stop when the calendar flicks past Christmas.

It’s their year-round mission to help individuals and families receive the support they need to overcome financial dire straits and arrive on the path to self-sufficiency.

Those are big reasons why The Intelligencer has again teamed up with the organizations on the Give A Christmas Fund, an annual do-gooding initiative now in its 32nd year. Administered by the BCOC, with 10% of the proceeds shared with the Keystone Opportunity Center, the fund provides financial assistance to individuals and families in need during the holidays.

Benefiting locals in Central and Upper Bucks County, as well as Eastern Montgomery County and the North Penn and Indian Valley communities, the fund provides a variety of assistance. That includes everything from help with buying gifts and groceries, to paying rent, medicine bills and utility expenses. Donations from local individuals, families and businesses fuel the fund.

Once holiday time needs are met, the nonprofits could use remaining donations to power their core outreach programs throughout the year — when wants are no less keenly felt. And those missions are vitally important.

Take the BCOC, which has been in operation since 1965.

Recognized as the lead social services agency in Bucks County, Doylestown-headquartered BCOC aims to reduce poverty and partner with the community to promote economic self-sufficiency. It does this through what leaders say are essential programs that focus on providing support/services in poverty-related crisis: economic self-sufficiency education; food; weatherization/housing help; and volunteer income tax assistance.

“There are 38,000 people in our county living at the poverty threshold, which is $25,750 gross income annually for a family of four,” said Tammy B. Schoonover, BCOC’s director of community services. “We’re challenged to reach as many of them as need our help through these five programs, or ‘doors,’ as we call them.”

For its current operational year, BCOC has so far assisted more than 17,000 locals. The numbers tell an impressive tale. BCOC has provided for 82,828 food pantry visits, distributed 1,907,514 pounds of food, and served 1,828 households through its Fresh Connect initiative — a mobile farmers market.

Additionally, the council has saved 1,030 people from evictions, connected 244 homeless individuals with permanent housing, and delivered crisis heater repair to 163 households. Through the volunteer income tax assistance program, BCOC prepared 1,390 returns, with refunds saved totaling nearly $1.7 million and tax credits reaching about $1.1 million. Fees saved tallied a touch under $270,000.

“Our programs help tackle the issues that prevent individuals and families with low-incomes from meeting their most basic needs,” said Schoonover. “However, we are not satisfied to help them just when they are in crisis; we want to help them leave poverty permanently.”

To that end, BCOC has provided household coaching to 1,619 households. It has also helped people through its economic self-sufficiency education and assistance initiatives. “In 2019, income when entering the program was $21,151,” said Schoonover. “Exit income was $55,133.”

Similar outreach and success stories are happening at Souderton-based Keystone Opportunity Center. “We house the homeless, feed the hungry, and educate adults and families in Bucks and Montgomery counties,” said Alan M. Raisman, Keystone’s manager of advancement.

Keystone’s work on food insecurity includes a food pantry that serves an average of 250 Souderton School District families per month, as well as a “Fresh For All” location in Souderton that weekly provides for 150 families, some from as far away as the Lehigh Valley. In 2018 alone, Keystone distributed 258,840 pounds of food.

Meanwhile, the nonprofit’s education efforts include five levels of English as a second language instruction, Citizen Test preparation, and helping folks achieve their high school diploma equivalency. There’s also a family literacy program for parents and their children. “In 2018, we educated 424 students,” said Raisman, noting Keystone was created by the 2009 merger of two nonprofits that dated back to the 1970s. “We offer classes in Souderton, Lansdale, Willow Grove and Norristown.”

When it comes to housing, Keystone’s programs focus on homelessness diversion, rapid rehousing, permanent supportive housing and single-room occupancy housing throughout Bucks and Montgomery counties. “We also manage two dozen low-income rental units,” said Raisman, noting that Keystone housed 178 individuals locally in 2018. “In addition to housing, we offer community case management in which we assist individuals with budgeting, life skills and programs like rent rebate assistance,” he said.

The effort can make miracles happen. Willy Puati is proof.

Puati and his family came to the Keystone Opportunity Center in 2011, having arrived from their native Congo only two weeks prior. They needed to learn English. They needed help with affordable housing and food until they could secure employment.

“We found them their first affordable house and assisted them with food from our food pantry, all while Willy and his wife were in English as a Second Language classes,” said Raisman. “They learned how to budget, and were able to make a down payment on a house. Willy’s English improved, and he was able to get a job in what he studied back home.”

By donating to Give A Christmas, locals can help fuel the futures of more folks like Puati and his family. Consider donating today.

“We are able,” said Raisman, ” to achieve everything we do with the support of the community and programs like the Give A Christmas campaign.”

The Intelligencer kicks off 2019 ‘Give A Christmas’ campaign

Over the past 30 years, Intelligencer readers have contributed more than $3 million to help families in need. We’re once again asking for your generosity to support the Give A Christmas campaign.

The Bucks County couple already had three children of their own, but that didn’t stop them from stepping up to obtain custody of their two nieces when unfortunate circumstances reared.

The addition of two more children placed intense strain on the working family’s budget — so much so that there was no extra money for Christmas gifts.

Still, all five children woke up to presents on Dec. 25. That was thanks to The Intelligencer’s Give A Christmas Fund.

Administered by the Bucks County Opportunity Council, with 10% of the proceeds shared with the Keystone Opportunity Center, the fund provides financial assistance to individuals and families in need during the holidays.

Benefiting in-need locals in Central and Upper Bucks County, as well as Eastern Montgomery County and the North Penn and Indian Valley communities, the fund provides a variety of assistance. That includes everything from help with buying gifts and groceries, to paying rent, medicine bills and utility expenses.

“The individuals and families served by Give A Christmas are living in daily instability. Very often, they are making a series of decisions — trade-offs regarding whether to pay rent, utilities or feed their families,” said Tammy B. Schoonover, director of community services at BCOC. “Give A Christmas provides an opportunity for low-income, under-resourced families to be relieved from the daily stress of this raw decision-making and to experience some joy during the holiday season.”

The Christmas miracles in struggling households only occur, however, if the community is generous. Donations from individuals, businesses and families provide the financial fuel for Give A Christmas.

Fortunately, the community has come through during each of the 31 holiday seasons that the do-gooding initiative has operated. Since 1988, locals have contributed approximately $3 million to Give A Christmas, with 2018′s total tallying $131,409.

“I’m thrilled we have the privilege of working with the Bucks County Opportunity Council again this year,” said Shane Fitzgerald, executive editor of The Intelligencer. “Intelligencer readers have a long history of using the Give A Christmas program to help those in the most need, at Christmas time and beyond. It’s so humbling to have that kind of support.”

In 2018, organizers used the money raised through Give A Christmas to help 420 families (1,310 individuals). Average assistance provided was $210. Average family/household income was only $16,826.

Organizers noted that, after the program satisfies eligible requests for assistance during the holidays, the remaining fund balance could be used to provide similar types of assistance to eligible locals in need throughout the year.

But with the weather turning colder and the holidays well in view, now is the time for the community to draw on the true spirit of Christmas and support neighbors in need.

“Our Give A Christmas goal is to brighten the holidays of families in need,” said Joseph Cuozzo, director of development at the Bucks County Opportunity Council.

2019 Fitzgerald: Give A Christmas returns for its 32nd year

Local news is our No. 1 focus, without question. That is what our readers expect and what we expect of ourselves. But we also live here and support our community. And, in my mind, the best way we show that is with our Give A Christmas program.

Give A Christmas starts Sunday, Nov. 17. Our previous owners, the Calkins family, started the initiative 62 years ago at the Bucks County Courier Times. They brought it to the Burlington County Times 52 years ago and to The Intelligencer 32 years ago. Two years ago, our generous community surpassed the $10 million mark in total funds raised overall and Intelligencer readers last year brought in $131,509.

Our ownership has changed, but our commitment to this endeavor has not. All proceeds go back into the distribution funds and any overhead costs are absorbed by The Intelligencer, the Courier Times and the Burlington County Times and their charitable partners.

The Intelligencer partners with the Bucks County Opportunity Council to collect and distribute monetary donations. The average family receiving help has an annual income of around $14,000. Intelligencer readers, since 1988, have supported the Give A Christmas fund with heartfelt generosity, but the eligible requests for assistance from families in need exceeded the money the newspapers collected. This year, we set a goal of $140,000 to help those in need.

Bucks and Montgomery county residents with children age 17 and younger are eligible to be considered for assistance, and the BCOC works with its partners to distribute funds throughout the community. A portion also goes to the Keystone Opportunity Council to assist those in Eastern Montgomery County. Readers can find information to submit requests and give donations at our website www.theintell.com/giveachristmas or find information daily in our Community section.

Last year, thousands of Bucks and eastern Montgomery county children benefited from the program, mostly from modest to large donations from readers. Every dollar counts and is important. We honor those who donate by recognizing them in our publications, publishing almost-daily lists of donors. Over and over, when needs come up, residents show their generosity through their wallets.

Sometimes, Give A Christmas proceeds provide a gift for kids who might not get one. Other times, it helps pay the utility or food bills. And it’s not just about Christmas. It helps anyone in need, regardless of their faith or politics.

We live in a great area and are fortunate to be where we are. Unfortunately, not everyone has the same opportunities or resources and often people get in a bad way through no fault of their own.

So as you’re considering your holiday charity giving this season, we ask you to donate to our Give A Christmas fund. Every little bit helps — we’ve received everything from $1 to thousands of dollars in donations and each benefits someone. Have a great holiday season, and I hope the gift of giving is in your budget.

Shane Fitzgerald is Atlantic Sub-Regional Executive Editor for GateHouse Media, including The Intelligencer and 20 other publications in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia and Maryland. Contact him at sfitzgerald@theintell.com.

2018 Give A Christmas: A tremendous outpouring of giving

Since mid-November, more than 870 people, families, organizations, community groups and businesses have opened their hearts and wallets to assist their neighbors in Bucks and Montgomery counties.

Since mid-November, more than 870 people, families, organizations, community groups and businesses have opened their hearts and wallets to assist their neighbors in Bucks and Montgomery counties.

That generosity to the annual Give A Christmas fund has brought the holiday spirit into hundreds of homes where it was most needed.

The fund is administered by the Bucks County Opportunity Council with 10 percent of the proceeds shared with the Keystone Opportunity Council.

The Intelligencer’s readers have helped provide a variety of assistance to individuals and families in need during the holiday season.

If you have not yet contributed this year’s effort, there is still time to donate. Make checks payable to BCOC-Give A Christmas and mail them in care of The Bucks County Opportunity Council, PO Box 1807, Doylestown, PA 18901. To use a credit card, visit www.bcoc.org and click Donate to Give A Christmas.

2018 Giving makes Christmas possible for those in need

Sometimes, all the hard work in the world can still leave you a bit short around the holidays.

Jacklyn Flores knows the unfortunate reality.

The Warrington woman is a dedicated administrative assistant, and when she gets off the day job, she goes immediately to her next more pressing assignment: being a single mom to her two children, ages seven and five.

Paying for all life’s necessities with young children can be difficult. And, as Flores bravely admits, there isn’t much extra for Christmas gifts.

But thanks to The Intelligencer’s annual Give A Christmas effort, there will be presents beneath the tree for Flores’ children.

“I wouldn’t be able to do it on my own,” Flores said. “Every little bit of help goes such a long way toward helping families like ours in the community. For that, I am so thankful.”

Administered by the Bucks County Opportunity Council, with 10 percent of the proceeds shared with the Keystone Opportunity Center, Give A Christmas provides financial assistance to individuals and families in need during the holidays.

Benefiting local residents in need in Central and Upper Bucks County, as well as Eastern Montgomery County and the North Penn and Indian Valley communities, the fund delivers a variety of assistance. That includes everything from help with buying gifts and groceries, to paying rent, medicine bills and utility expenses.

Donations from families, businesses and individuals make the outreach possible. Thanks to such local donors, Give A Christmas has raised about $2.9 million since its inception in 1988.

With only one day left until Christmas, now is the time for locals with the means to contribute — to help propel the fund toward this season’s goal of $140,000 in donations, organizers say.

Rest assured, the money goes directly to benefit folks like the Flores family. If eligible requests during the holidays are fulfilled and there is money left over, the remaining funds can be used to provide assistance to eligible local residents throughout the year.

“Give A Christmas is an opportunity to support your community — to help your neighbors who need it most,” said Joseph Cuozzo, director of development at the Bucks County Opportunity Council.

Last year, Give A Christmas generated $139,439.46. That helped the Opportunity Council to provide assistance to 472 families (1,465 individuals). Average assistance per family was $187. Of the families served, average household income amounted to $16,211.

Flores encouraged folks to give what they can. The giving, she said, fills the hearts of families like hers with the sincerest gratitude.

“To anyone who has donated or is considering donating I would just say: Thank you,” Flores said. “People who need this support are truly grateful. You are helping so many families.”

2018 Donation match pledge as final days of fund near

Al Brown is offering a donation match, up to $5,000, to help power The Intelligencer’s Give A Christmas fund toward its 2018 season goal of $140,000

In the 1951 classic film “Scrooge,” there’s a poignant scene featuring the ghosts of successful men who were selfish and stingy in life.

Now seeing the errors of their greedy ways, the specters are trying desperately, from beyond the grave, to help a young homeless woman and her child, who huddle on a snowy street. Still, the ghosts’ power to intercede is gone, and they wail and lament.

Be assured: Al Brown will never be among that sorry lot.

The Buckingham man, a 52-year-resident of Bucks County, is the definition of success, rising to become one of only three corporate fellows in Rohm and Haas Co,’s history. But the chemist’s considerable corporate achievement is matched equally by the size of his generous heart.

That’s why Brown is offering a donation match, up to $5,000, to help power The Intelligencer’s Give A Christmas fund toward its 2018 season goal of $140,000.

The annual charitable campaign is in its final days, and now is the time to act.

“I’ve been donating to Give A Christmas for about 20 years,” said Brown, who actively supports other Bucks County charities, such as Bucks Knocks Out Hunger. “I believe in it because it’s a hand up, not a hand out.”

Indeed, the money goes to help locals, many of whom sadly fall into the category of the working poor.

There are the couples laboring in low-wage jobs who have just enough to cover bills and nothing left for Christmas presents for their children. There are the single moms and dads doing everything they can to juggle parenthood and work. There are the struggling families who’ve been touched by untimely death or bank account-draining illnesses.

Give A Christmas aims to make the holiday possible for such folks by providing financial assistance during the holidays. The Bucks County Opportunity Council administers Give A Christmas, with 10 percent of the proceeds shared with the Keystone Opportunity Center.

“The Bucks County Opportunity Council couldn’t accomplish its mission without the generous support of all our donors,” said Joseph Cuozzo, the council’s director of development. “For Give A Christmas, your donation can mean the difference between nothing for a family or having something to give. For families with kids in particular, it really means a lot.”

Benefiting local residents in need in Central and Upper Bucks County, as well as Eastern Montgomery County and the North Penn and Indian Valley communities, Give A Christmas delivers a variety of assistance. That includes everything from help with buying gifts and groceries, to paying rent, medicine bills and utility expenses.

If eligible requests during the holidays are fulfilled and there is money left over, the remaining funds can be used to provide assistance to local residents throughout the year.

Thanks to donations from individuals, families and businesses, Give A Christmas has raised about $2.9 million since its inception in 1988. Last year, the campaign generated nearly $139,500 – money that went to help families with an average household income of $16,211.

By donating during these last days before Christmas, community members have the power to accelerate this year’s fund past 2017′s tally. Don’t be one of the ghosts caught out in the cold, wishing you would have acted for good. Make your donation today.

“I’m very big on helping the people of Bucks County,” said Brown. He encouraged those who can to find it in their hearts to give this holiday season.

2018 It’s crunch time for Give A Christmas donations

Thanks to your donations, Give A Christmas has raised about $2.9 million since 1988 to help neighbors in need.

As winemakers, the Forest family knows the joys of a good harvest — the sense of abundance it brings. They have been sharing that feeling with others through the wine they’ve produced at their Buckingham Valley Vineyards & Winery in Buckingham since 1966.

Still, founder Jerry Forest also is acutely aware that for financially struggling folks in the local community, abundance can be little more than a pipe dream. That scarcity is most sharply felt around the holidays, and that’s why each year, Forest and Buckingham Valley Vineyards donates to The Intelligencer’s Give A Christmas Fund.

“Christmas is a time for giving and sharing with those less fortunate,” said Forest. “We feel that Give A Christmas offers an opportunity to give directly to those in need. We have been donating from the very beginning. With little overhead or bureaucracy, Give A Christmas is a most worthy charity.”

Administered by the Bucks County Opportunity Council, with 10 percent of the proceeds shared with the Keystone Opportunity Center, the fund provides financial assistance to individuals and families in need during the holidays.

Benefiting needy local residents in Central and Upper Bucks County, as well as Eastern Montgomery County and the North Penn and Indian Valley communities, the fund delivers a variety of assistance. That includes everything from help with buying gifts and groceries, to paying rent, medicine bills and utility expenses.

Donations from families, businesses and individuals powers the outreach. Thanks to such local donors, Give A Christmas has raised about $2.9 million since 1988.

After the program satisfies eligible requests for assistance during the holidays, the remaining fund balance could be used to provide similar types of assistance to eligible locals in need throughout the year.

It certainly delivers value in that purpose, said Joseph Cuozzo, director of development at the Bucks County Opportunity Council.

For instance, Cuozzo shared the story of a hard-working mother who benefited from the helping hand Give A Christmas and other services the Opportunity Council can provide.

The woman became homeless in the summer of 2017 after missing work due to health issues.

Fortunately, the Opportunity Council was able to house the woman and her son through a rapid rehousing program. Once her housing situation stabilized, the Bucks County mom transitioned into the council’s Economic Self-Sufficiency Program, where she has worked diligently on increasing her household income through job advancement.

“She is saving through an ES-matched savings account for home ownership and she hopes to utilize her savings and ES Graduate Home Ownership Award toward a home purchase,” said Cuozzo. “She is an absolutely wonderful parent, a dedicated employee, and a very kind woman who overcame a great deal this past year to reach economic stability.”

Indeed, Give A Christmas money goes to benefit many people like this woman — working poor who through a job loss or health issues or a death in the family fall on difficult times. The way GAC donors see things, it’s incumbent on the community to help get these individuals back on their feet — something that benefits not only the charity recipient, but Bucks and Eastern Montgomery as a whole.

“Give A Christmas allows more of our donation to go directly to the families that can benefit from it,” said Forest. “It feels good to share some of our good fortune with those in need.”

And the need is real.

Last year, Give A Christmas generated $139,439.46. That helped the Opportunity Council to provide assistance to 472 families (1,465 individuals). Average assistance per family was $187. Of the families served, average household income amounted to $16,211.

This year, The Intelligencer aims to raise $140,000 through Give A Christmas. Be part of the do-gooding and give today.

2018 #GivingTuesday a good day to help your neighbors in need

Now in its seventh year, #GivingTuesday has helped people all over the world with gifts of money, time and assistance.

The effort, held the first Tuesday after Thanksgiving, serves as an opportunity for people to include charitable organizations in their holiday plans.

Here in Bucks County, there is an opportunity to assist your neighbors in need and organizers hope the annual Give A Christmas fund will be on your #GivingTuesday gift list.

The Intelligencer, along with the Bucks County Opportunity Council, is asking readers to open their hearts and wallets to help hundreds of local families this holiday season. This year marks the 31st anniversary of the Give A Christmas fund, which hopes to meet its goal of raising $140,000.

The fund is administered by the Opportunity Council with 10 percent of the proceeds shared with Keystone Opportunity Center. The two community action agencies work on behalf of Give A Christmas to identify individuals and families needing financial assistance during the holidays.

In 2017, the community contributed $139,439.46 to Give A Christmas which allowed the Opportunity Council to provide assistance to 472 families (1,465 individuals) with the average assistance per family of $187. Of the families served, the average family income was $16,211.

To mail a donation, use the donation coupon from the newspaper or download a copy at www.theintell.com/giveachristmas. Make checks payable to BCOC-Give A Christmas and mail them in care of The Bucks County Opportunity Council, PO Box #1807, Doylestown, PA 18901. To use a credit card, visit www.bcoc.org and click Donate to Give A Christmas.