Poverty in Montgomery and Fulton counties

A glimpse into poverty in Montgomery and Fulton counties
· 26 percent of children in Amsterdam, and 31 percent in Gloversville, are living in poverty; 31.8 percent of Latinos in Amsterdam live in poverty;
· 22 percent of adults in both Fulton and Montgomery counties have not completed a high school education;
· Montgomery County Catholic Charities provided 615 families, including 698 children, with food assistance in 2006;
· 16.7 percent of non-elderly residents in Montgomery County, and 14.3 percent in Fulton County, lack health insurance; and
· 153 housing units in Fulton County, and 146 in Montgomery County, lack plumbing facilities.
Catholic Charities encourages parishioners to call on legislators to address the needs of struggling constituents.

This blog is participating in Blog Action Day, an annual nonprofit event that aims to unite the world’s bloggers, podcasters and videocasters, to post about the same issue on the same day. The aim is to raise awareness and trigger a global discussion: this year the issue is poverty. Between now and October 15, we will be posting about poverty in our diocese, with material provided by Catholic Charities in its report "Poverty in the Diocese of Albany: A Threat to the Common Good." The report, and additional information, is available here.