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OK, Jack Frost, this is getting a little ridiculous.
What exactly did the folks of the Midwest do to earn this chilly treatment? Did we not give you the Christmas presents under the tree you so desired? Where you tired of all this talk of global warming, and wanted to show Al Gore that you still had the power to “chill out” everyone for weeks at a time?
When driving to work today, the electronic sign at one of the banks read “-0.”
Not even zero, but minus-zero.
That’s too cold.
Please, if you have elderly neighbors, make sure and check on them this evening. Make sure their home is warm, and that they have a good meal to enjoy as well. It is extremely difficult for our elderly neighbors to get out in this weather, and they may need someone to run to the store and fetch them a gallon of milk, a loaf of bread or other staples.
Also, please keep in your thoughts anyone who is without a warm bed to sleep in during these weather conditions.
Dee Vernon, with the Crosslines Guesthouse located at 415 N. High St., in Neosho, said the shelter is at half capacity. She said the guesthouse is licensed for 30 people to stay, and currently is housing 15 residents. She said the guesthouse has seen an increase in inquiries since the start of the winter storm, but as they go through the admission process the number of people actually coming to the shelter decreases.
“We are finding a problem with people getting to our facility,” Vernon said. “We are getting more calls from people needing help in places that do not have shelters, such as Cassville or Monett.”
For someone to stay at the shelter, Vernon said they must present a photo ID, a Social Security card, have no outstanding warrants and no history of crime that would put the other residents or staff at risk.
She said the guesthouse does accept walk-up traffic, so if you know someone who is without a warm bed this weekend, please pass along this information and help him or her get shelter.
Also, as we end the third week of school being out of session in all of our area school districts, we need to realize that having the family home for this length of time can be taxing on the household budget.
I know that in our home we have made more trips than normal to the grocery store to stock up on food. The kids are eating all their meals and snacks at home, instead of eating both breakfast and lunch at school, and that means we are spending more of our family budget on food.
OK, Jack Frost, this is getting a little ridiculous.
What exactly did the folks of the Midwest do to earn this chilly treatment? Did we not give you the Christmas presents under the tree you so desired? Where you tired of all this talk of global warming, and wanted to show Al Gore that you still had the power to “chill out” everyone for weeks at a time?
When driving to work today, the electronic sign at one of the banks read “-0.”
Not even zero, but minus-zero.
That’s too cold.
Please, if you have elderly neighbors, make sure and check on them this evening. Make sure their home is warm, and that they have a good meal to enjoy as well. It is extremely difficult for our elderly neighbors to get out in this weather, and they may need someone to run to the store and fetch them a gallon of milk, a loaf of bread or other staples.
Also, please keep in your thoughts anyone who is without a warm bed to sleep in during these weather conditions.
Dee Vernon, with the Crosslines Guesthouse located at 415 N. High St., in Neosho, said the shelter is at half capacity. She said the guesthouse is licensed for 30 people to stay, and currently is housing 15 residents. She said the guesthouse has seen an increase in inquiries since the start of the winter storm, but as they go through the admission process the number of people actually coming to the shelter decreases.
“We are finding a problem with people getting to our facility,” Vernon said. “We are getting more calls from people needing help in places that do not have shelters, such as Cassville or Monett.”
For someone to stay at the shelter, Vernon said they must present a photo ID, a Social Security card, have no outstanding warrants and no history of crime that would put the other residents or staff at risk.
She said the guesthouse does accept walk-up traffic, so if you know someone who is without a warm bed this weekend, please pass along this information and help him or her get shelter.
Also, as we end the third week of school being out of session in all of our area school districts, we need to realize that having the family home for this length of time can be taxing on the household budget.
I know that in our home we have made more trips than normal to the grocery store to stock up on food. The kids are eating all their meals and snacks at home, instead of eating both breakfast and lunch at school, and that means we are spending more of our family budget on food.
A high percentage of the families in the Neosho R-5 School District are in the free or reduced lunch program, and there is a concern that the children in these families may not be getting the nutrition and warm meals they need during this extended break for school.
This winter, more than ever, the work of the Newton County Food Basket Brigade may be a saving grace for the families that received assistance, as many of those same families have children in school.
So, here’s to praying that the temperatures in our region get back to normal levels for this time of year, the snow and ice melt away, the children go back to school Monday and that life gets back to a little normalcy next week.
Rick Rogers is the publisher of the Daily News. E-mail him at rrogers@neoshodailynews.com.
