Let’s give thanks, in word and deed

Thanksgiving Day marksthe beginning of the holidays, a time that is joyous for millions worldwide. But an equally universal experience is a personal loss that can make each day painful, or a chronic shortage in basic necessities that takes the gleam out of what others celebrate as a bright season.

There have been glimpses of sunlight in the economic data for Hawaii, which is doing better than many states. Hawaii’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.5 percent in October this week, which is the lowest it’s been since November 2008 — when financial markets collapsed and job layoffs began accelerating.

News of a better jobs climate locally as well as improving consumer confidence nationally may give the impression that things are looking up for everybody. But they’re not.

Helping Hands Hawaii, a nonprofit organization that reaches out to help families and individuals in need, has noted that the fallout from the economic downturn is still here, and for some seems to be increasing.

Jan Harada, the agency’s chief executive officer, said requests for help through its Adopt-a-Family Program are up by 20-25 percent, with well over 400 families on this year’s list. The program matches struggling families with people in the community willing to help fulfill holiday wishes. And, she said, many of these are people who never dreamed they’d need help and suddenly were hit with unemployment, underemployment or significant bills — sometimes all three.

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser works with Helping Hands through its own Good Neighbor Fund (see box), and through the holidays helps to tell the stories of these families. They are still the homeless and the working poor, but increasingly, Harada said, they are people who come from all walks of life.

In the paper’s spotlight on Sunday was Tikesha Washington, a mother of three who escaped an abusive marriage, and while she works to get back on her feet, she wants her kids to have holiday gifts after weathering a family crisis.

Harada said that for too many, unemployment has persisted since the recession began, and even those who have found work haven’t regained their past salaries. These are people who could use a moment’s respite from the struggle, a time to recharge their spirits so they can resume their job search or retraining efforts. Getting back out there in the trenches is tough, Harada said, when you begin to lose hope.

Even those who don’t have much money or donations to share can give the gift of attention and time. Most of us know someone who is feeling alone at a time of the year when that’s especially difficult. A gesture of some kind — a phone call, a visit, a card — may come at just the right moment.

The world is filled with turmoil, with Gaza and Syria only two of the most troubled hot spots. As remote as solutions to such crises remain, the thing that everyone can do in their own sphere is create peace on the small scale, for a person in need or even within their own families.

Ideally we wouldn’t need an annual reminder to reach out, but since we do, there’s no better time to start than a day set aside for appreciating our own treasures.

Have a happy and safe Thanksgiving.