Picture of local poverty painted at Salvation Army dinner

POLAND

Those who are fortunate, who had food in the refrigerator this morning and have a place to sleep tonight need to share their good fortune, said Dr. Cynthia Anderson, president of Youngstown State University.

One way to share is to help the Salvation Army of Mahoning County be a shield for the homeless and hungry and hopeless, said Anderson, keynote speaker for the Salvation Army’s 2012 Annual Civic Dinner Tuesday night at the Lake Club.

The definition of absolute poverty is the lack of food, shelter, clothing and water, Anderson said.

Two billion people in the world live in poverty; 35 to 40 million people in the United States live in poverty, and Youngstown has the highest areas of concentrated poverty among the nation’s largest cities, she said.

“We can make the decision to act or not. What are you going to do?” she asked, challenging the audience, before three community leaders were honored for their contributions.

Read more about the event in Wednesday's Vindicator or Vindy.com.