"We remain grateful, astonished and proud of the continual giving efforts by Decatur citizens."
The editorial board at Decatur's Herald & Review "nailed it" on this one.
An excellent summary of what makes Macon County so special and why I love living, working and serving here.
Read all about Decatur's generosity below.
Grace & Peace & Love to you all -
Matt
Decatur Herald & Review
Editorial Board
12/18/2017
We've been using a special indicator for stories we've been running about the holiday generosities of people and groups in our community.
“Season of Giving” reflects the thousands of gifts given within the community to those in need. There have been coat gatherings and giveaways, like the one Herald & Review employees contributed to, profiled in print earlier this week. The Shop with a Cop efforts always result in a good story and some great photos and the Shop with the Sheriff earlier this month did the same. Toys for Tats resulted in new presents, in the form of a discounted tattoo for givers and in the form of actual Christmas gifts for children. Toys for Tots and the Salvation Army combined make the season brighter for thousands, collecting and distributing 8,000 toys.
Millikin University's annual Empty Chili Bowl Fundraiser benefited Good Samaritan Inn. The Heroes of Legend Cosplay characters enthrall children and adults throughout the year, and we found them this month ringing bells for Salvation Army. You've seen hundreds of people, including some Herald & Review employees, doing the same thing this holiday season. An anonymous contributor gave thousands of dollars to pay for prescriptions at a Mount Zion pharmacy.
And those are just a few of the ones whose stories we've told. There are surely hundreds if not thousands more that could be told.
There's one thing we never tire of pointing out about the Decatur community – it's among the most generous in existence everywhere. Decatur is general terms is far from well-to-do. Yet its citizens regularly manage to dig deep and give to those who are in need.
Our community is host to a foundation that leads the way in inspired donations. The Howard G. Buffett Foundation and its millions of dollars directed to Decatur efforts is certainly achieving Buffett's professed goal of improving the safety and quality of life in our city. Those dollars help in innumerable ways to get large things accomplished.
There's no reason, of course, to sit back as Buffett's foundation does the heavy lifting. And Decatur does not do that. For openers, we need look no further than the annual WSOY Community Food Drive. Every day, we encounter people whose lives have been made better by that effort, the country's largest food drive. We also encounter every day people who have put forth efforts small and huge to make that event a success. What is more noble than helping feed your neighbor? Especially when donations to the drive immediately turn around and help people the next day?
When word of the water disaster in Flint, Michigan, reached Decatur, a half-dozen trucks filled with thousands of bottles of water were dispatched. When disasters strike around the country and world, Decatur residents step up immediately, with no requirement of credit or thanks.
These efforts are undertaken regularly throughout the year because there are enough people in this community who believe in doing the right thing. There's always room to help more, and Decatur residents find that room and regularly fill it.
Often in pieces like this during this time of year, writers have to resort to saying something like “It's too bad this generous attitude cannot last year-round.” We don't have to say that here. What we say is we remain grateful, astonished and proud of the continual giving efforts by Decatur citizens.
Grace & Peace & Love to you all -
Matt
Decatur Herald & Review
Editorial Board
12/18/2017
We've been using a special indicator for stories we've been running about the holiday generosities of people and groups in our community.
“Season of Giving” reflects the thousands of gifts given within the community to those in need. There have been coat gatherings and giveaways, like the one Herald & Review employees contributed to, profiled in print earlier this week. The Shop with a Cop efforts always result in a good story and some great photos and the Shop with the Sheriff earlier this month did the same. Toys for Tats resulted in new presents, in the form of a discounted tattoo for givers and in the form of actual Christmas gifts for children. Toys for Tots and the Salvation Army combined make the season brighter for thousands, collecting and distributing 8,000 toys.
Millikin University's annual Empty Chili Bowl Fundraiser benefited Good Samaritan Inn. The Heroes of Legend Cosplay characters enthrall children and adults throughout the year, and we found them this month ringing bells for Salvation Army. You've seen hundreds of people, including some Herald & Review employees, doing the same thing this holiday season. An anonymous contributor gave thousands of dollars to pay for prescriptions at a Mount Zion pharmacy.
And those are just a few of the ones whose stories we've told. There are surely hundreds if not thousands more that could be told.
There's one thing we never tire of pointing out about the Decatur community – it's among the most generous in existence everywhere. Decatur is general terms is far from well-to-do. Yet its citizens regularly manage to dig deep and give to those who are in need.
Our community is host to a foundation that leads the way in inspired donations. The Howard G. Buffett Foundation and its millions of dollars directed to Decatur efforts is certainly achieving Buffett's professed goal of improving the safety and quality of life in our city. Those dollars help in innumerable ways to get large things accomplished.
There's no reason, of course, to sit back as Buffett's foundation does the heavy lifting. And Decatur does not do that. For openers, we need look no further than the annual WSOY Community Food Drive. Every day, we encounter people whose lives have been made better by that effort, the country's largest food drive. We also encounter every day people who have put forth efforts small and huge to make that event a success. What is more noble than helping feed your neighbor? Especially when donations to the drive immediately turn around and help people the next day?
When word of the water disaster in Flint, Michigan, reached Decatur, a half-dozen trucks filled with thousands of bottles of water were dispatched. When disasters strike around the country and world, Decatur residents step up immediately, with no requirement of credit or thanks.
These efforts are undertaken regularly throughout the year because there are enough people in this community who believe in doing the right thing. There's always room to help more, and Decatur residents find that room and regularly fill it.
Often in pieces like this during this time of year, writers have to resort to saying something like “It's too bad this generous attitude cannot last year-round.” We don't have to say that here. What we say is we remain grateful, astonished and proud of the continual giving efforts by Decatur citizens.