Even though the temperature was in the 70s over the weekend, I pulled out my recipe box and began thinking about what to serve my family on Thanksgiving Day.
Each year, we have the old favorites and then I try to add a new dish to the menu. It’s hard for me to believe that Thanksgiving will soon be here, and you know what that means — Christmas is coming up right behind.
For 57 years, the good people of Northeast Philadelphia have been looking out for their neighbors at Christmas, making sure that those who are less fortunate have a full holiday dinner and each child has at least one gift under the tree.
The Northeast Times’ Eleanor Smylie Community Fund does a great job of matching those who could use help at Christmas time with neighbors who have a few extra dollars to spare.
So far this year, the newspaper has received requests for help from 67 people. Among them are a dad who has lost his job, a single mom who is struggling to put food on the table and a family with a child with such a serious medical condition that just about everything goes to pay the medical bills.
The daily mailbag is also bringing us good news — checks from generous readers who are reaching out to help. Whether large or small, each donation is gratefully accepted on behalf of those who will receive gift cards from the community fund as a result.
We will print donors’ names and the amounts in the paper, or we will honor requests to remain anonymous.
Last week, I cheered when I heard that Oxford Beverage had sent in a check for $1,000. That is by far the check with the biggest number of zeroes we’ve received so far. And I was told that this isn’t the first year this company has helped out in such a big way. To me, that’s the very definition of being a good neighbor, and for that we are grateful.
If you’d like to join the ranks of donors, or if you’d like to make a request for help, the address is the same. Write to us at:
Eleanor Smylie Community Fund
2512 Metropolitan Drive
Trevose, PA. 19053
Or you can reach me by the email or the phone number listed below.
If you are asking for help for yourself or if you know of someone who needs assistance, we need you to include the name and contact number of an agency or friend who can verify the information.
We are commited to helping as many people in need this holiday season as we can. I hope you will help us make this the most successful year to date. ••
Donors
• Sharon Bradshaw: $25
• Bruce (Frankford): $3
• Elaine Gentile: $50
• Jeffrey George: $20
• Jane Lambing: $20
• Sophie Mansfield: $15
• Helen Maclain: $25
• Linda Mount: $25
• Officers and members of Mystic Lodge #270, I.O.O.F.: $150
• Oxford Beverage: $1,000
• Shirley Quirus: $25
• Joseph Tomaino: $25
• Imagine: $20
• Anonymous: $15
• Anonymous: $25
• In memory of the late Rev. Andrew O’Rourke, C.S. Sp.: $25
Reach Lillian Swanson at 215–354–3030 or lswanson@bsmphilly.com
