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Nov. 21—By mid-November, most people have already leaped headfirst into the holiday season.

The trick-or-treaters have collected their candy and put away their costumes, and preparations for Thanksgiving have begun. Turkeys have been picked out, invitations to dinner made and plans for Black Friday shopping have been mapped out.

In some houses Christmas trees have already been put up and gift buying has begun. A faint trace of the magic of the season can be felt in the air.

But that's not the case for everyone. For hundreds of people in communities across the region, the start of the holiday season is fraught with stress and frustration and worry.

Some are struggling with a job loss, others with unexpected and crippling medical bills.

Some are single mothers doing all they can to provide for their children. Some are dealing with tragedies like a house fire or the death of a loved one.

Some are simply stretched thin by ongoing inflation that has pushed the prices of groceries, gasoline and other items sky high.

Each could use a helping hand to make this holiday season a little brighter.

And that's exactly what Operation Holiday — which kicks off today — is all about.

Operation Holiday is an annual program run by local MediaNews Group newspapers — which include the Reading Eagle — that uses donations from readers to provide local families in need with gift cards to buy food and presents during the holiday season. It also raises funds for local food banks.

A desperate need

For the last 2 1/2 years, Jay Worrall has found himself in the middle of a strange and scary new world.

The executive director of Helping Harvest food bank in Spring Township has seen the havoc wrought by the COVID pandemic cause the need for his organization's services to explode.

And while in many ways the world has begun to move on from the devastating disease, its pain is still being felt by many. Particularly when it comes to food insecurity.

"We have seen over the last six months or so another spike in demand," Worrall said.

Worrall said the high inflation the U.S. and the world are facing — caused in part by supply chain breaks due to COVID and exacerbated by Russia's invasion of Ukraine — has meant Helping Harvest has found itself doling out about $1.5 million in food each month.

"Those are numbers that we have not seen since the peak of the early part of the pandemic back in November 2020," Worrall said. "Everybody is talking about the cost of food and the cost of gas."

Amanda Musselman, executive director of the MontCo Anti-Hunger Network, said she has also seen families struggling with inflated costs that have them suddenly facing food insecurity.

"None of us are strangers to the new norm of food prices which have significantly increased by 10% this year," she said. "A lot of people — seniors, families with children and young adults — are coming to food pantries for the first time. They are working, but their dollar doesn't go as far as it used to."

Musselman said inflation has forced some struggling families to make impossible choices.

"Every day, our community is making tough decisions, usually a choice between food and other critical needs like medicine, housing, child care and transportation," she said. "Going into this holiday season, our emergency food network is seeing a sustained surge in demand for pantry services.

"I urge those who can to step up and give because it is our responsibility to take care of each other and our community."

Anne Shuniak, senior manager of marketing and communications for the Chester County Food Bank, said people in her community are also struggling.

"Tens of thousands of families, children, seniors, veterans and individuals in Chester County are struggling to put food on the table," she said. "The demand for food assistance has increased by more than 30%, yet food and financial donations have decreased by more than 25% for the Chester County Food Bank."

Like those turning for help at Helping Harvest, families seeking services from the Chester County Food Bank are feeling the pinch caused by inflation.

"The impact of inflation on household budgets continues to intensify," said Andrea Youndt, the food bank's CEO. "It's more expensive to put gas in your car; heating costs have increased. And then, of course, the prices at the grocery store are more with every trip.

"For many households, spending hundreds of extra dollars each month on the same necessities will likely force them to reduce their spending somewhere, and unfortunately, that is typically their food budget."

Youndt said inflation has also made it more expensive for the food bank to provide assistance.

"The Food Bank has spent $500,000 more on food costs in the past six months than the same time last year," she said.

But that added cost isn't stopping local food banks from helping.

Worrall said that taking care of those in need in the community becomes even more urgent during the holiday season, with families looking for an affordable way to celebrate.

"For the winter holidays, food just plays a central role in them," he said. "Traditional holiday meals are expensive and likely out of the range of low-income folks' ability to handle on their own. So people are looking for more help from us.

"This is usually our busiest time of the year, and I'm very sure that will be the case this year."

Along with seeing an increased need during the holiday season, food banks also see increased donations. Worrall said Helping Harvest receives about 40% to 50% of its financial donations during the last two months of the year.

"Really, the funding that we get in November and December sets the table for next year," he said. "And we are anticipating another very challenging year next year."

Three decades of support

Operation Holiday dates to 1991 when it was created by The Mercury in Pottstown as a way to help struggling families provide something for their children during the holidays.

The mission of the program is to make sure there is food on the table and gifts under the tree when Christmas morning comes.

Now in its 32nd year, the program has served thousands of families throughout Berks, Chester and Montgomery counties, expanding its reach in recent years to include communities served by the Reading Eagle, The Times Herald, The Reporter and Daily Local News.

The program's growth led to a total of $122,000 in donations last year, which helped provide food and gifts for 379 children and cash donations to 13 food pantries in Berks, Chester and Montgomery counties.

"The level of giving by our local readers last year was unprecedented," said Nancy March, a MediaNews Group editor and board member of the foundation that manages Operation Holiday. "We were able not only to help local families in need, but also to support the work of food pantries who deal every day with childhood hunger in our communities."

This year, Operation Holiday has partnered with 22 agencies in the tri-county area. Agencies have referred 144 families with 375 children for gifts and food and an additional 34 families for food. The program is also assisting the eight families in Pottstown who lost their homes in a devastating explosion in May.

There is no overhead with Operation Holiday and all funds stay local. Funds are collected and audited in a nonprofit foundation account managed by staff of MediaNews Group who volunteer their time.

Gift cards to area grocery stores are provided to each family for food so they can purchase the fixings for a holiday dinner as well as staples for the pantry. Weis Markets is a partner with Operation Holiday and has assisted with food purchases and gift cards.

Gift cards for every child in the program 16 and younger are purchased through Boscov's and distributed in partnership with the referring agencies so families can purchase gifts of their choice.

Operation Holiday does not accept families who have not been referred by an agency.

Operation Holiday is funded solely by reader contributions, and all contributions are tax deductible.

How to donate

Online donations are being accepted in a secure portal in partnership with TriCounty Community Network. Visit tcnetwork.org and click on the link for Operation Holiday.

Contributions can be mailed with checks payable to Operation Holiday to PO Box 1181, Pottstown PA 19464; The Reporter, 307 Derstine Ave., Lansdale PA 19446; Operation Holiday, 1440 Lacrosse Ave., Reading, PA 19607.

The names of all contributors are published in the participating newspapers as donations are received. Please note whether a contribution should be designated as anonymous or given in tribute or in memory of someone.