‘Tis the season’ when everyone is choosing their own special way to help others in need. Needs like those of: a child who has cast all their hope and a Christmas wish into one shining tag on the branches of a public Christmas tree, an elderly couple who ask for nothing but clearly do without certain necessities or the lost child of God who needs to hear the truth of Christ for salvation. In these three examples and every other reality of life, someone has to share what they have to help the needy.

One great thing about sharing is that you have enough to give. A giving attitude will always involve a willingness to share time and effort. Recently an offer from a neighbor brought an invitation for us to hunt another property with him. Another friend of my husbands asked just this week if we needed any venison. Thanks guys for sharing and having the consideration to show our family how much you care. What blessings! That is the kind of attitude it takes to reach out to others.

Sharing abundance with our family, our friends and our neighbors will turn strangers into a community. Those around us who are truly less fortunate have a need that does not go away after we pass through the commercial hype that reminds us that, this is the season to give. In Missouri a program called, Share the Harvest can provide venison to feed the needy throughout the year. This program is sponsored by the Conservation Federation of Missouri and Missouri’s Department of Conservation.

According to the Conservation Federation the cost of processing the deer is the responsibility of the hunter. Monies are available to help with processing cost when a whole deer is donated during the urban county portion of the firearm season. All processing for whole deer donations in the urban portion of firearm season is paid for by the Conservation Federation of Missouri and other local sponsors. Throughout the rest of the year the Conservation Federation of Missouri administers a state-wide program that does pay $35 direct to the processor for each whole deer donation. This helps hunters with the cost of meat processing for their donations. Each processor will decide what fee reduction they can offer in exchange for the meat that hunters donate to Share the Harvest.

My neighbor hood is in Henry County, Missouri. The county has different processing locations where this service is offered. To donate meat, hunters take their deer to local meat processors who participate in the meat donation program. One of those participants, Jack Hetherington, co-owner of Hetherington Meat Processing in Clinton, Missouri explains how the donation process works when a hunter brings a deer into the Hetherington meat plant and wants to be a part of Share the Harvest.

"The normal process fee is $70. Hetherington will take $15 off that cost, and the hunter pays a $20 fee, the Conservation Federation pays $35 to cover the remaining processing cost. Quite a few charitable hunters pay their part of the fee to donate meat to those in need." Jack also said, "The meat goes through our plant and we process and wrap the meat for those who need it. That is the whole process on our end. Then the Samaritan Center in Clinton comes and picks up the donations and places it in needy hands from there." Hetherington is open from 8-5 Monday through Friday and 8-12 Saturday. During deer season they are open extended hours Saturday from 8-5 and then Sunday from 8-5 for hunters who need their services. To contact Hetherington Processor call 660-885-4409.

Anyone in need of meat donations in Henry County, Missouri should call the Samaritan Center of Clinton at 660-885-8555. The Samaritan Center contact for this service is the Director, Carolyn Kelsey. Carolyn told me, "We couldn’t do it without the volunteers and area donations. Food pantries can’t always buy enough meat for those in need. Donations come to us packaged as a one pound portion of ground meat. We give it out according to family size. This program is just a wonderful way to help those in need."

There is always a need for feeding hungry families in Henry County. Kelsey explains, "Our donations come through Share the Harvest and Harvesters food supplements right here in Henry County. Donations of food and money can also be given at the Samaritan Thrift Store location, which will be open again in January and at the Samaritan Center throughout the year. We do have government commodities but we are not a government agency. So if a family is one dollar over the government guidelines for offering assistance we can still help that family." Carolyn has seen more working families that are in need of assistance recently than in years past. These working class families are hard pressed to make ends meet. They are facing the high cost of gas and grocery prices. That puts them in a tough spot and they are making decisions to do without food or heating in order to pay bills and buy fuel.

The December Food Box, dubbed ‘Christmas Cheer’ served more than 800 needy families according to Carolyn. "In the previous month of November the Samaritan Center in Clinton, Missouri served 663 families." That breaks down to individual lives touched in their greatest need. The numbers show 960 hungry adults, 605 hungry children and 203 hungry seniors who filled their tummies with deer hunter donations and food bank subsidies in Henry County last month. That is a grand total of 1,768 mouths fed with the help of local venison donations. Locally or statewide the numbers all add up the same way; telling us that in every holiday season and throughout the year there is always a need to feed the hungry.

Since the Missouri Department of Conservation began this charitable program in 1992 donations to this worthy cause has gradually grown to share meat to those in need throughout every county of the state. In the tenth year after the start of the program 96,000 pounds of meat were donated to Share the Harvest by Missouri hunters. Just last year Missourians donated 130-tons of venison to feed hungry families in this state. In a direct quote from the Missouri Department of Conservation, "During the 2005 deer season, 5,091 hunters donated 267,541 pounds of venison."

Currently Missouri is one of thirty-nine states nationwide where hunters participate in their own local state implemented Share the Harvest program. Wherever hungry mouths are hoping for table fare hunters are making that a reality. That is definitely a can do attitude that is putting meat on the plate for many Missouri families.

Some states are totally funded by share the harvest programs relieving the hunter of any cost. Other states add a one dollar fee to hunting licences to curry the processing cost. The Pennsylvania Game Commission has to raise funds for approximately $70,000 to $90,000 annually in donation processing cost. In a completely different approach they do this through a non profit entity that works within the state to serve the needs of the hungry. They do this through a service called Hunters sharing the Harvest. HsH is working to feed those in poverty through a cooperative program of meat processors and food banks that bring hunter donations to otherwise bare tables. This program is privately funded. Hunters sharing the Harvest spokesman, John Plowman, had this to say, "We are a 501c3 organization independent of the state. All of our program activity from the hunter who donates meat to HsH through the whole process of whom and where the meat goes to including those who eventually receive the meet is all well documented."

The participating processors provide the service for donated whole deer. "Currently we ask the hunter to pay $15 when they donate a whole deer. That is a voluntary fee for the hunter to pay. Some hunters pay the entire cost and others give the nominal suggested cost. Now if the hunter is unable or refuses to pay we still process the meat into ground burger and place it into one pound and two pound bags for a pick-up by the Regional Food Bank."

Butchers will bill the Pennsylvania Game Commission at the end of the year for the cost of those donation processing fees and then receive one big check to cover their cost. John said, "We would like to get to the point where this is a free service. We have processors all over the state and still some hunters don’t have a local place to take meat donations."

Throughout the year the processors also grind and bag elk, caribou, Canadian geese, Antilope, bear, hogs and beef for donation to the hungry. Food banks receive the donations through the Regional Food Bank locations and disperse meat to women’s shelters, local food pantries, church group homes and other like agencies where the poverty stricken can come to eat hot meals and receive food bank donations.

Soup kitchens throughout the state of Pennsylvania prepare the ground meat for needy families as they strive to reach their goal of feeding 200,000 Pennsylvanians annually; threatened by hunger. For more information contact Sheila Christopher, Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Association of Regional Food Banks at 724-743-3000. She has more information about the daily needs of Pennsylvania residents living below poverty level.

In a state where the deer population has topped one million the excessive deer herd does damage to crops, land and motorists. The resulting solution to the expanding deer population has given Pennsylvania hunters a liberal hunting season that brings plenty of venison to share. This is despite the reported fewer number of deer hunters in Pennsylvania. Deer and hunters are strong links in the Pennsylvania food chain that feed the hungry in that state. The staggering fact is that there are 1.3 million living below the poverty level in Pennsylvania. These people are in immediate need of food throughout the year.