I want to talk to you about “money” today, but not in the usual sense.

Now that the holidays are over, Americans are back to work. U.S. employment numbers for months now have shown that more people are working than ever before and that the unemployment stats are at a record low. We should be very happy about that.

A job should mean that wages can cover all your essentials like rent, heat, clothing, medicine, and most importantly food, right? The reality is, however, not always. Unfortunately, the jobs created are increasingly mostly low-wage jobs. About 40% of all U.S. workers are paid less than $12 per hour and that’s a big problem.

Having a job may mean NOT being able to pay all the bills or consistently put food on the table.

You hear about income inequality a lot these days, but there are some shocking statistics that are not well known about something as simple as those who need and use their local food bank. You may not even know where your local food bank is located, but somebody you likely know goes there every week or month.

What’s even more shocking is that almost half of the people who use their local food bank—there are estimated to be over 50 million families—more than 20 million of those people are children.

Not just seniors on Social Security, the disabled, and the unemployed are using the food bank to survive. More and more the working poor are forced to find them and use them. 25 million working families in America now are using food banks!

These working families are not turning to food banks only in emergencies. Most are depending on the local food pantry as part of their regular survival strategy. Most face wrenching choices between paying for food and heating their home, buying medicine for a family member, or making the mortgage.

After the holidays, contributions drop tremendously of food, money, and volunteer time to all charities and your local food bank is no exception. If you are lucky enough to have a good paying job, live comfortably in your home, are able to pay your bills, and actually save some money and are not worried about where your next meal is coming from, you still have a responsibility to do something to reach out and help the rest of your community.

So how can you help? My wife and I for several years now have done things that most of us can do. We have contributed money, food, and even volunteer time to help the food bank over and over again because it’s really important to us. It should be that way for everybody.

You can do something, too. At the very least, if you have some canned foods that you can donate, just put together a bag and drop it off at the food bank. Even better is to set up some kind of regular way to donate a gift to them or perhaps help raise money for them at a local fundraiser which they often have planned. Volunteering is also a great way to help. Without volunteers, the food banks wouldn’t even be able to operate as almost everyone working there is not paid a penny to help.

You may not need the food bank now or ever, and I hope that is true. But if you ever do, you should know it’s there, it’s free to use, and it’s not some kind of government agency supported by tax dollars. It is for you and supported by you and it’s one great way to give to help others. To find your local food bank, try FoodPantries.org.