Donations Save Lives and Warm Hearts

The American Society of Safety Engineers Louisville Chapter collected canned goods this season for the Dare to Care program. I mentioned Dare to Care in a previous post so check that out. We collected several bags of canned goods and some money for the program. Thank you, members of the ASSE Louisville Chapter.

A touching story to share already:
I took the money and canned goods to a community center that partners with Dare to Care and I also had a bag of stuffed animals that Ollie wanted to give away. When I went in and asked where to bring the canned goods a woman offered to help carry items in. She was there as a program participant, not as an employee. When I handed her the bag with the stuffed animals in it she asked if she could look through the bag. Of course, I said yes and she pulled out a little brown bear with a Harrison County Hospital shirt on it that Ollie got when he was getting blood drawn for a bout with jaundice at a month old. She asked if she could have that bear and told me her granddaughter was born at that hospital and she was a month old. She said she didn't have a lot to give them this year and would love to add that bear to the small amount she did have to offer. It made me feel really good to give such a small gift that made such a big difference. She also mentioned she was there to visit the food pantry to get weekend supplies for her family and thanked me for making a donation. She said she volunteers her time in organizing the food in the pantry since they've helped her so much in the past few months. She had very warm eyes and a sweet smile.

Do you know a family in your community that could use an extra gift or two? Maybe there is a food bank in your community you could share a few canned goods with? Is there an angel tree at the local WalMart or bank? Can you just share a smile or a helping hand? I've been traveling this season and have found that instead of smiles I get grunts and I get bumped and cutoff and hit with luggage. It's very frustrating, so give someone a smile or let the woman carrying the baby step in front of you in line. Are we so busy we can't spare five minutes?

I hope you have a great holiday season and I hope you'll find a way to make it a little brighter for someone else, too.

Thank you for those who are participating in rewarding programs. If you have a story you'd like to share here to encourage others to join in please leave a comment.