Washington County's economic progress is leaving some of us behind. How can we help?

Former Washington County Superintendent of Schools Boyd Michael showed up May 21 in a familiar place but with a different purpose.

He came before the county commissioners with a challenge about real progress.

"When I get things in my head and I can't let 'em go and I can't do anything about 'em, I feel like I need to share," he said.

Since his retirement from the school system, Michael has been a volunteer tutor. He's also joined Sleep in Heavenly Peace, a group that provides beds for children who don't have them.

You read that right; children who don't have beds.

This group builds dozens of beds each month that are given to children, along with mattresses and linens, so they won't have to sleep on the floor. Michael helps build the beds, but had recently helped deliver some for the first time, he said.

Not only were these children without beds, he said, but there was no place to store their clothes — which they were keeping in cardboard boxes.

Boyd also serves on the committee that makes grant funding recommendations for the commissioners, and spent about 25 hours reading through the grant proposals.

"It's troubling to me to hear about homelessness, incarceration, substance abuse, child abuse, spouse abuse, obesity, health issues, food insecurities — and the list goes on and on and on," he said.

"There are so many good things happening in Washington County, but it's only happening to about half of our community," he added. "The other half of our community is struggling, and we need to find a way to address that."

His comments were bookended that morning with a message from Teresa Peek, executive director of The Elder Group, which quietly provides emergency services to seniors who need help — frequently with housing or protection.

On Fridays, the organization provides meals for seniors and the homeless. Last year, Peek said, she had prepared more than 7,000 meals for these distributions. Last year also brought the highest number of calls from Meritus Medical Center for help for displaced seniors, she said.

My friend Heather Guessford is president and CEO of United Way of Washington County. She and her staff frequently deal with situations that echo the stories Michael and Peek told — of food insecurity, of families on the edge of a financial cliff, of needs most of us never even would have thought about.

The message is clear: The true measure of our progress isn't just how many businesses we attract, although that obviously helps. But it also must be reflected in how we address the needs of our most vulnerable.

The challenge for the rest of us — and not just the local governments or the school system — is what we're willing to do to help.

And, sadly, whether we're willing to overcome our own prejudices to do it.

Some of us believe at least a portion of these folks deserve to be in the position they're in. I've found over the years, however, that some of the people who complain loudest about people who "cheat the system" know the least about how "the system" works or about the people who need it.

But even if there are people who abuse the services available, isn't it better to deal with those cases as they come up than to deprive people — especially children and the elderly — who need them?

Beyond government agencies, there are a lot of nonprofits out there trying to meet the sometimes overwhelming need. We'll make real progress if those of us who can will help out — with donations, with support, by volunteering.

In 21st-century America, have we betrayed those who sacrificed their lives for freedom?

You can be part of our community's progress if you're willing to pitch in. Give your favorite nonprofit a call this week to find out how you can help. They'll likely have a whole list of ideas.

Because as Michael said, "if we're gonna be a community that we enjoy to live, work and play, we need to include all people in our community."

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Economic prosperity is still leaving too many county residents behind