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The Gift of Giving

Christmas is such a wonderful time of the year.

The Christmas season gives us an opportunity to celebrate the birth of the world’s most important Child, and to share that celebration with those who are closest to us.

Sometimes getting to Christmas can be a little rough, though. We have to endure Black Friday, when folks frantically shop for bargains; Small Business Saturday, when we do our best to support our local vendors; Cyber Monday, when we try to get the most from our online tech shopping dollars; and all the rest of it–holiday parties, errands, and a thousand other things to check off our Christmas list.

Throughout it all, I ask you this: what is the one thing that you will remember most about this Christmas?

Will it be the long lines in the store, the busy traffic on the street, or the long list of errands that needed to be done?

Maybe it’s that new gizmo or gadget you have always wanted; or the socks, shirt, or new shoes that are wrapped and waiting under the tree at this very moment.

What I’m hoping we all remember most, is the feeling we have when we give a gift to another; when, through our gift, we make another person’s life better.

As we finish giving and receiving gifts this Christmas, I hope everyone remembers that special feeling: the gift of giving.

Because the gift of giving is the most magical of gifts, it warms our hearts, fills our souls, and reminds us of just how lucky we are.

In fact, I hope that the giving season will never end.

I hope, that Christmas day signals the opening day of next year’s GIVING SEASON.

Today, charities, families, businesses, and individuals are coming together to transform the way people think about, talk about, and participate in the giving season. 

It is a simple idea. It’s an idea that we can all be part of. The more you give, the more you receive. 

Your gifts do not need to be big, nor do they need cost money.

You could donate your time, serve on a committee, mentor a teen, lend a helping hand, be a volunteer, join a service club, or even be a champion for a cause. It all counts. It all matters. And it all means that you’re part of the gift of giving.

All of us can find ways to give more and give better.

Ukiah offers so many opportunities to give; more than I could ever mention: The College Foundation, the High School Alumni Committee, the Youth Project, Project Sanctuary, the Boys and Girls Club, Nuestra Casa, Ford Street, Food Bank and Buddy Eller Center, Humane Society, Red Cross, Veterans Efforts, Arbor on Main, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Youth Sports and many – many more.

If you don’t know where to start, try The Community Foundation of Mendocino County; their single purpose is to help people find a way to give back to our community.

Or… Maybe you could help the retired couple living on your block that needs help getting their garbage to the curb. Maybe the widow who lost her husband a few years back could use a friend to talk to for a few hours. Maybe the teenager living with a single parent who has never been fishing would love to join you next time you go. Maybe the young couple with small kids you see in church could really use a sitter for a few hours. Maybe the neighbor whose furnace broke would really appreciate some of that extra firewood you have out back.

The opportunities to give are all around us. They are the gifts we should hope for. They are the gifts that really mean the most.

I hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas – and that everyone gets the opportunity to give – for the gift of giving is the best present we could ever receive.  

As always, our mission at UPD is simple: to make Ukiah as safe as possible. If you have any suggestions or comments about how we can improve, please feel free to call me, complete our online survey, or leave a crime tip on our website: www.ukiahpolice.com. 


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