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Greatest gifts aren’t hard to find Many thanks for Mission Viejo residents who donated to local food banks or donated blood to the Red Cross over the Thanksgiving holiday. The same needs of the poor and sick continue every day and throughout the Christmas holidays. Also, thanks to all of you who have or will donate toys for needy children, which is mostly what you hear or read about in the media. Support all the toy collections you can. But these same kids have to eat, of course, and food banks continue to be under-stocked due to higher prices for food from the farm and fuel for delivery. Many remain 40 percent below normal for the holiday season. While the Mission Viejo NewsBlog likes to focus on Mission Viejo, all the major food banks serve south Orange County and don’t turn any of the needy away. If your own church has a food bank, donate there. If not, the South County Outreach (www.sco-oc-org) is the perfect alternative. Also, the holiday season traditionally is the period where Red Cross blood banks are at their lowest levels. Blood donations plummet, but oftentimes demand for blood increases, as more people are traveling during the holidays or otherwise exposed to injury. If you are healthy, make a pledge between now and New Year’s Day to give blood. Go to www.givelife.com. To turn it into a New Year’s resolution, pledge to give blood about once every two months (the minimum wait period). There is no greater gift you can give to a sick person than to give blood. Think about that as you enjoy the holidays with family and friends. Allan Pilger |
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