Just one little smile makes it all worthwhile!
When you find the perfect coat for a child; the one that fits perfectly and causes the child who receives it to pat the coat with a satisfied expression on his or her face; this is the moment you know why you were out in the cold and that your efforts were worth it.
For the children who collected the coats, it’s a moment of wonder when each realizes they really can make a difference in someone else’s life. Until this moment, collecting coats was something they ‘wanted’ to do, but in an abstract kind of way. Now, there’s a little face smiling happily, and they know what they do counts in this world.
The coats will wear out or be outgrown, but for at least this winter, another child will be warm. The knowledge that they can make a difference will be with them always. Instead of being a grand finale to a community service project started in innocence, it’s just the beginning.
As the grandmother, I am very proud of these kids. At first, they were timid when approaching strangers to explain what they were doing. But within a short time they were confidently handing out their ‘business’ cards and saying, “Hi. My name is…we’re collecting coats for kids in our community who don’t have warm coats for this winter and lap blankets for the nursing home…”
They were polite, stepping aside with a “Thank you” when someone indicated they weren’t interested, and answering questions asked by others. The store manager came out to tell me customers were commenting on ‘the great kids outside doing such a good thing’. Some of these customers were buying things to donate. Others were donating money for caps, gloves, and blankets for nursing home residents. Truly, we live in a wonderful community.
Thank you to everyone who donated – and to everyone who encouraged these kids with a few minutes of your time! YOU make a difference, too!
0 responses so far ↓
There are no comments yet...Kick things off by filling out the form below.