The holidays are a time of joy and fun, but they’re also a time in which we can still help those in need. Times can be tough for a lot of people, especially when we’re living in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Unfortunately, many must deal with a lack of access to food, and Marvel and Jurassic World star Chris Pratt can relate to their situations. While helping to promote Feeding America, the actor got candid about his family’s reliance on food banks when he was a child.
During an Instagram Live interview, Chris Pratt spoke with Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot about the organization’s efforts and encouraged fans to donate. One of the things Pratt and Babineaux-Fontenot also discussed is the fact that man people who seek out help from Feeding America have never done so before. The company estimates that 40% of people who are receiving help have never reached out before. With this in mind, it can be difficult for some to seek out assistance for the first time and Pratt stressed that it’s OK to ask for help:
I think often times when we're illuminating this message and shining a light on this need, we're saying, 'How can we get people to help?' but it's important to de-stigmatize the idea that if you need help it's okay to accept it. It is, it’s OK to accept it.
From here, the actor began to open up about growing up in a small town that experienced its fair share of economic problems. This led Pratt’s family to utilize food banks for their meals:
I grew up in a small town, we had 7,000 people in our town, and we had some economic hard times. And we had a food bank nearby, and I'm not ashamed to say that there were moments when my family would need to eat from a food bank. There's no shame in it, especially right now with what we are going through. There is help out there, and you can find that help and get that help, and there's nothing wrong with needing that help.
Pratt later continued to appeal to those who don’t need help by asking them to be of service. The actor specifically pointed to this coming season as a time to lend a hand:
And if you are a person who doesn't need help, there's a great feeling in service of helping someone else. It's a great thing to do this holiday season.
I honestly think that just about anyone would agree with Chris Pratt’s sentiments. Even when people are going through hard times, it’s not easy for some to speak out when they’re in need of support. There is a stigma that surrounds the concept of asking for help and, hopefully, the public, along with organizations like Feeding America, can come together to help break it.
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