Ahh, Thanksgiving. When the weather in the northeast becomes my favorite – cool, crisp, blustery. When we are reminded about the importance of feeling and expressing gratitude. And when the stark contrast is so noticeable between those in need and those experiencing over-the-top abundance.

The picture is of my daughter Aregash during one of our Costco supply shopping trips. As you can see, we have to buy A LOT. Two years ago we were providing backpacks to 15 children. This year we are providing backpacks to over 100!! For each child that’s 2 breakfasts, 2 lunches and 2 snacks each week. That’s 400 bagged meals weekly! That’s pretty amazing. It means that 100 children are experiencing less food insecurity when not in school. I suggest we all think of these numbers while many of us enjoy our turkey feasts. Let’s please make sure that we feel and express our gratitude for all that we have.

Along the lines of gratitude, I would like to express my appreciation for so many individuals with whom I get to work because of PHA Thrive:

• Catie for helping to pack food bundles every week.
• In for recruiting Catie to the cause.
• Aswita and her family for doing all that I do at the Early Childhood campus, and then some, for the Upper Elementary campus. And for being the best working partner I could imagine. 🙂
• My neighbor Liz for packing bundles at my house each week.
• My friend Oliver for Costco supply runs.
• My friend Betsy who lives in Tennessee and insists on supporting our work here in Somerville.
• Nurse Maureen for handling all the sign-ups and distribution at the EC campus.
• Julia for processing all my receipts for reimbursement and for assisting with all of our fundraising efforts.
• Byron for quietly and efficiently hauling boxes overflowing with food bundles from the stoop to the nurse’s office
• Twinx the cat for keeping me company Thursday evenings as I bundle things up to deliver to school.

And that’s just to name a few. There are so many others, including many families who make it a priority to attend our fundraisers, make donations, and offer support in various ways. (Two that stand out are Scott Brooke and Mandy Shear.) It does take a village to make PHA Thrive work. And I am very grateful to be part of such a fantastic village.