Be generous this holiday season

Opinion

Discussion

October 31, 2006

It isn’t easy to think about Christmas while the Halloween jack-o’-lantern continues to rot on the porch and the trick-or-treat candy still is making the children bounce off the walls, but the yuletide season will be here before we know it.

Christmas is a time for children, and making sure children in Enid and Garfield County have a good Christmas is a big job every year.

According to the most recent census figures, 11.1 percent of Enid families have incomes below the poverty level. These families, and others who have moved to Enid since the last census, depend on local charities to make their Christmases happy.

And the local charities depend on you. There are a lot of needs out there and a lot of organizations working to fill those needs, all asking for help this time of year. Sometimes it seems a bit overwhelming.

In the past, local aid groups worked independently, but no longer. Christmas Task Force, a committee of the United Way of Enid and Northwest Oklahoma, has put the efforts of several fundraising groups under one umbrella. This will help avoid a duplication of efforts and should help ensure donations go as far as possible.

Among the local organizations working to make this Christmas a happy one for needy local families is Salvation Army, which is joining forces with Toys For Tots to provide gifts for newborns and children up to age 12, as well as some families. To donate, contact the Salvation Army (237-1910) or look for the bright red kettles manned by volunteer bell-ringers at various locations around Enid this holiday season.

Salvation Army also will sponsor its Spruce Up A Life campaign again this year. Local groups gather gifts and decorate trees to distribute to local families. Area residents also can take an angel off a Salvation Army angel tree and provide a new, unwrapped toy for the child whose angel was selected. Department of Human Services has a similar program with its teddy bear trees.

Catholic Charities is providing gifts for newborns to teenagers up to 19 years old. Call 237-7352.

Monday evenings in December, University Place Christian Church, 2107 E. Broadway, will provide a meal from its soup kitchen. Call 234-5221 for information.

Dig deep and be generous this holiday season to make Christmas merry for those less fortunate.