The Scarsdale Inquirer – Hometown newspaper of Scarsdale, New York 10583

November 18, 2011

Editorial

Say thanks with cash

As the countdown to Thanksgiving begins, we weigh the concerns and complaints of Scarsdale citizens against those of people in the outside world: the ongoing killing of protestors by the Syrian government, economic catastrophe in Greece and Italy, child abuse cover-up at Penn State, dire warnings about worsening environmental conditions. And we conclude that we’re pretty lucky to be living in this exceptional village, where our biggest worry is the effect of state imposed limits on our property tax levy.

That is not to say our concerns are trivial, or that our people do not suffer all the ills flesh is heir to: joblessness, divorce, addiction, abuse, disease, mental illness, death. But as a community, we are fortunate. We have institutions to help us cope with trouble and loss; we do not have to face them alone.

What could be more basic than saving a life?

Scarsdale § Edgemont Family Counseling Services helps people of all ages contend with social and psychological problems. The PTAs raise money for college scholarships, as does the Scarsdale Foundation. Volunteer firefighters assist the professionals in safeguarding our lives and property. Meals on Wheels provides food for the homebound elderly. Scarsdalians support these causes. But for some reason, they have not responded in sufficient numbers this year to the fundraising appeals of the Scarsdale Volunteer Ambulance Corps.

What could be more basic than saving a life? The ambulance corps is standing by 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with paid professional paramedics and volunteer emergency medical technicians, who train at their own expense and give their time to neighbors in need of emergency medical care or transportation to a hospital. SVAC offers advanced life support, one of the highest levels of prehospital care available. Many patients are spared long uncomfortable waits in the emergency room by SVAC’s on-the-scene intervention; those who need further care in the hospital are given priority if they arrive by ambulance.

Last year, when SVAC handled more calls than ever before, just under 30 percent of residents responded to the fundraising appeal, down from past years’ average of 40 percent. This year, the level of giving has sunk to a measly 12 percent, most them repeat donors. The ambulance corps gets no direct support from the village or county; it relies solely on fees paid for services and contributions from grateful community residents. While the corps bills its clients’ insurance companies for services provided, no one is refused care based on type of coverage, or lack thereof.

This Thanksgiving, we’re grateful for the bounty of our tables, the love of family and friendship of neighbors, the bonds of community, the service of our veterans, the efforts of our volunteers. Not a week goes by without news of charitable efforts organized by local residents, and even more heartening, by their children.

Should we not also be grateful for the paramedics and volunteers who respond promptly and professionally to our calls for help? There is no service, among the many provided by Scarsdale volunteers, that is more likely to be used by the average family at some point in their lives here. Is there any family that has not experienced an emergency on a holiday — a cut finger while carving turkey, a concussion while playing touch football, choking on a bone, a heart attack? Isn’t it comforting to know SVAC is there for us, even on Thanksgiving?

The ambulance corps needs more than gratitude — it needs money, in any amount, especially from those who have never contributed before. Write a check today, and send it to SVAC, P.O. 92, Scarsdale, NY 10583.

Let’s get that percentage of donors back into the respectable zone.

Read more local coverage of your hometown in this week’s issue of The Scarsdale Inquirer. Newsstand copies are available at several locations listed above, or subscribe today for convenient home delivery.

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