Thursday, December 18, 2008

In Respectful Disagreement...

By: Strategerie

I really admire Kathy Holmgren. Not only has she supported her husband through years of a very high-stress and public job, she cares about the world around her. Instead of spending her days with the ladies that lunch, she makes a difference with her volunteer work in the area. At the same time, today, Mrs. Holmgren, I wish you’d made a different decision about the recipients of this Sunday afternoon’s fund drive

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It’s not that I don’t care about those currently starving and dying in the Congo. What’s happening there should turn the stomach of any thinking person. What I do care about right now, though, is the guy sitting in his sleeping bag on a slab of concrete in the shadow of Qwest Field. I care about the family standing in line at the local food bank because they’re jobless and homeless. I care about the clients you work with at the Pike Place Clinic, which serves those who don’t have health insurance.

This was another chance for the Seahawks to make a statement to those attending Sunday’s game about the staggering need in this area. The last time I saw statistics on the matter, there were eight thousand people currently homeless in King County. I’m sure that number has risen over the past four months. There are thousands more who don’t know where the money’s coming from for rent (or a house payment,) food, heat, and how on earth they’re going to pay the latest doctor bill.

If there was one thing I wish I could convey to Sunday afternoon’s stadium full of Seahawks fans, it’s this: Please donate the equivalent of the price of your game ticket to a local charity. If you can afford a Seahawks game, you can afford a donation. We all enjoy going to Qwest, but I can’t help but wonder what the money 50,000+ shelled out for tickets, parking, food and drink could do for Hopelink, or Northwest Second Harvest, or the Pike Place Clinic.

While you’re thinking about what’s going on in the Congo, please think about what’s going on just beyond Qwest’s parking lot.

Again, Mrs. Holmgren, thank you for your caring heart and all your hard work on behalf of those who need your help.