This woman leaning out from behind the telephone pole to see how long the line was at the Cherry Street Food Bank yesterday afternoon was one of the lucky ones. Even though she had about half a block to go (and the line was moving pretty slowly), behind her, the line went around the corner and all the way back to James Street.

Elderly immigrants, working-age couples, young children, single parents, unemployed folk... all in that line. And I know that people are hungry all year—and we should give to charities like Northwest Harvest all year—but I'll be damned if it doesn't kill me to see kids four, five, and six years old standing for an hour at the food bank a few days before Christmas. "In the last three years, the number of hungry families in Washington State has nearly doubled," Northwest Harvest explains. You can contribute to Northwest Harvest, which supplies the Cherry Street Food Bank, (and stick it to Gawker) by donating right here.