THE CROWD:Remembering the less fortunate

They have a brochure that features an infant on the cover drinking from a bottle. The caption reads, “It’s true … a lot of homeless people are on the bottle.” Serving People in Need, otherwise known as SPIN, created this brochure meant to dispel assumptions about the homeless, and create support for an organization that comes to the aid of people living in dire situations. Led by the organization’s dynamic executive director, Jean Wegener, the crowd of supporters gathered last weekend in Huntington Beach at the Waterfront Hilton to share dinner and raise money for those who, for the most part, cannot afford dinner at all — let alone a place in which to have the meal.

Appropriately, this is a very important Thanksgiving story. Not just for the obvious reason. The message for Thanksgiving — and for the rest of the year, is that hunger is a day-to-day, meal-to-meal crisis — or a more polite word might be “challenge.” Those who hunger, however, have no use for politeness or political correctness. The significance of the baby with the bottle on the Serving People in Need brochure is to let the public know that nearly 70% of the homeless people in Orange County are families with children. They are not alcoholics wandering the streets, at least not for the most part. In truth, there are many homeless souls who suffer from alcoholism, drug abuse, mental illness and many other forms of addiction or self-destructive behavior that require much more help than simply a hot meal. Yet that hot meal is one small step toward a better life. It may in fact save a life on the edge.

The Thanksgiving message is to give and not judge. Perhaps this important reminder was best illustrated by the speech delivered to the Serving People in Need audience by a young woman who rose from the dinner crowd to share her story with donors. The woman, youthful and blond, the image of the healthy California beach girl, proceeded to tell the audience about her life on the street, living in her car with her son, and then becoming pregnant yet again, while homeless. Her story horrified many as she described a reckless life supported by various forms of public aid, including that of Serving People in Need.

There are many citizens who resent the giving of aid to individuals who seem to “take advantage” of public generosity. Perhaps, rightly so. But who has the right to sit in judgment of the circumstances of the poor, the infirm, the hungry, the homeless? Is it not better to save than to curse? Is it not right to give freely, especially when it comes to providing food and shelter to those in need?

The more than 300 Serving People in Need guests in attendance came to give freely. They came to stand up for those in need. And they came with the attitude, “There but for the grace of God.”

Major sponsors of the evening included the Richard F. Crawford Co. represented by homebuilder Dick Crawford and his wife, Kim, Wells Fargo Bank, Roger and Gail Kirwan, the Robert Mayer Corporation, Frank and Peggy Listi, Geoffrey and Nancy Stack, Dick and Karen Nichol, Premiere Commercial Bank, Golden State Foods and Robins, Kaplan, Miller and Cerisi LLP, represented by Tom and Kim Miller.

Spotted in the crowd were honorees of the evening Mary Lou Shattuck, John, Lori and Sarah Petry, and the Rev. Father Kerry Beaulieu of Our Lady Queen of Angels Church, Newport Beach. Also on hand were Serving People in Need board members Al Grassi and Tom Miller and dedicated committee volunteers Patricia Benson, Linda Howit, Peggy Listi and Kim Frazier.

As you share your Thanksgiving with family and friends today, remember the simple motto of the Serving People in Need dinner this week in Orange County — “Count Your Lucky Stars” — and then consider finding it in your heart to give freely to those who need without judging their plight. Happy, healthy Thanksgiving, Newport-Mesa.

To find out more about Serving People in Need and how you can help, call Kim Frazier at (714) 751-1101.