Giving back to Liberty
The Christmas season is in full swing here. No more teetering on the fence about whether it’s too early to play Christmas music. With only a week left until Christmas we’ve fully embraced the holiday season here on the Georgia coast! Between wrapping toys up in brightly colored paper and swatting little hands away from said presents, I’ve had a second to really reflect on the holiday season. This is a time when yes, we’re madly trying to mark things off our shopping lists but it’s not just about that latest “it” toy.
Most of us think of our favorite Christmas event and things like baking cookies or decorating the tree come to mind. (We don’t have a Christmas tree with lights on it- it’s more of a giant beacon of festive colored lights disguised as a Christmas tree.) But what’s really at the heart of the holidays that reflects the true spirit of our community? As I think about it the lights are pretty and Ms. Susan McCorkle’s Oreo balls are totally worth sacrificing your waistline for, but is that really what this time of year is about? I tend to think not. If you ask most people it’s a time of year where we are reminded of the needs of others. It’s the season of giving.
This week all six of us in the office set up in the kitchen to stamp 3000 bags for those in need. They’ll be stuffed with necessities like socks and toothbrushes and handed out throughout our community by the American Red Cross. While we don’t ever want to stamp that many bags again, it was a small gesture we could do to help those who work to brighten someone’s holiday. And this past Thursday at Business After Hours as I was mindlessly stuffing my face with Christmas candy Karen Bell, the world’s most dedicated volunteer, was still thinking of others. She asked if she could have the leftover candy to stuff in those festive bags we made. That way those less fortunate could get something fun, too. I think we could all be a little more like Karen Bell, not only this season but year-round.
Ok, I’m going to get a little cheesy here but what the heck. Mother Theresa said “If you can’t feed 100 people, then feed just 1.” We don’t have to be Superman saving the day, but we should do what we can for our community. While you’re watching Elf for the thousandth time think about who you could be helping during this holiday. Need help identifying an organization to volunteer or donate to? Take a look at our calendar or this list of non-profits, check out social media, ask your friends and coworkers. The opportunities are endless. Take a second to give back this season. Whether it be donating food to the local animal shelter or giving your time stamping bags for an organization to give supplies to those in need. I promise you won’t regret it.
We often talk about the reasons we love Liberty County. The coastal sunsets and tree lined dirt roads are pretty high on that list of reasons but our community wouldn’t be what it is without the people in it. And that’s why it’s Reason No. 1.
-Erin Johnson, Creative & Content Manager for the Liberty County CVB
The Right Blend Blog is written by two different authors employed by the Liberty County Chamber/CVB. As we are able, we rotate weeks and each writes about our individual experiences, opinions and let our writing reflect our personalities and creativity. All content provided on The Right Blend blog is for informational purposes only. The owner of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site.
