Christmas has always seemed a very depressing time of year to me.
I was trying to help a former foster son apply for a Christmas hamper only to find that the thousands of charity hampers available have already been spoken for. Last week only the Salvation Army was still taking applications for hampers.
This young man will get help from some of us who know him but there are many who do not even have a place to store a hamper.
According to Statistics Canada, the top 20% of Canadians owned 68% of the country’s wealth while the bottom 40% owned 2.7% of the wealth in the first quarter of 2023. There is no surprise here that the rich got richer and the poor got poorer at a faster pace than the year before.
Despite the efforts of our provincial government to help people who need help the poverty of many is overwhelming. I hope any who are able will remember that helping others is so important. I will be giving friends and relatives donations to charities and for some just provide food or money. Please remember how important it is to help others.
Dave Connell
Saanich
