Don’t take blessings for granted

I grew up in a low-income family. Both parents born during the Depression worked full-time as hourly employees and raised as proud farming families.

My dad was a Korean War veteran. When my sister was born, dad didn’t have $50 for the hospital bill. The local banker refused to loan him the money. Mom’s parents did.

Mom worked in a café, eight hours a day, five days a week. Dad was a mechanic, delivered milk, did auto body work and was a mail carrier. He also rebuilt vehicles in the garage adjacent to the house for extra income.

The only home I remember didn’t have indoor plumbing or hot water until I was in 8th grade. I was embarrassed. Some friends found it a novelty. They rarely stayed in the winter.

Mom and a friend raised a huge vegetable and strawberry garden every year. My job was to wash, not pick, produce. She canned or froze our fruits and vegetables. The majority were sold and delivered to Villisca residents long before farmers’ markets.

Grandpa gave us a bottle calf or two every few years that were fed and processed at the local locker so there was meat in the freezer.

Our clothes were homemade except for Easter and prom dresses. There was a strict budget. The sale rack was our option.

Minimum wage in Iowa in the 60s and 70s wasn’t always followed. They were small employers and no unions. There wasn’t room for vacations, extras, dance lessons, or contributions for college tuition.

I knew from an early age, that money was an issue in our family. I listened to fighting after my sister and I went to bed. I never went hungry. Mom said that food was less expensive than doctor’s bills.

If you haven’t experienced family stress caused by low income, you may not understand the fear involved. Maybe you haven’t worried about feeding your family, paying rent, car payments or insurance.

Judge not.

I haven’t forgotten their fights or taken my current blessings for granted.

Judge not.

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits were affected by the government shutdown. Approximately 130,000 Iowa households or nearly 270,000 people receive SNAP. That includes 100,000 children. Food banks and churches are struggling to meet demand.

Judge not.

As of June 2025, approximately 669,456 Iowans are covered by Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program or CHIP. More than 183,000 adults are covered by ACA Medicaid expansion. Children are 40% of enrollees. Adult Medicaid enrollees who are working are make up 77%. People 65+ or with disabilities use 51% of the spending, according to KFF.

Judge not.

Medicaid reductions and expiration of tax credits subsidizing ACA coverage will boost insurance costs. The “Big Beautiful Bill” cut benefits to give tax breaks to billionaires.

“They work the system,” I hear when talking about SNAP or Medicaid. This isn’t first-hand information.

It’s not time for judgement, but help. If you have been blessed, give a helping hand to neighbors.

Someday it might be you needing a hand. Circumstances can change in an instant. Who will help?

Pat Shipley is the mayor of Nodaway, a political activist who ran for Iowa House in 2022, a former ISEA member and staff member and the mother of a teacher and grandmother of an 8th grader.