Record Unemployment Rates Mean More Children Are at Risk

The question people used to commonly ask their friends is, “How is your job?” Now, more often they’re asking, “Do you still have job?” Last week, the Labor Department announced the unemployment rate had jumped to 7.2 percent in December, a 16-year high. And this week it was reported that in the first week of January, 524,000 people filed for unemployment. That’s a half million more unemployed people IN ONE WEEK!

These days everyone knows of a friend or family member who’s lost their job. It’s truly heart wrenching. But what’s really upsetting is how this is affecting our nation’s children. They are the innocent victims of our sour economy.

Especially hard hit are families who were already barely struggling to get by. More and more I’m hearing about small cities becoming like ghost towns after the local factory closes its door. There’s no work to be found. Some desperate parents must travel 80-100 miles just to find a job. What doesn’t get eaten up in fuel costs is usually barely enough to scrape by. More and more they are turning to local food pantries to feed their children. And all too often, they are being turned away empty-handed because there’s just not enough food to meet the staggering need.

This year, we’re going to have to work harder than ever to reach out to struggling families and hard-hit communities with food and other essentials. Thankfully, we have faithful partners standing with us on the front lines . . . generous friends who believe like I do that no child should go hungry in America!