When Santa Comes Early

This week’s news of how our food bank numbers have crept up to 3500 families a month – our highest on record – created an immediate response. By coincidence our new website was launched on the same day, effectively providing a portal for citizens to express their support.That’s what’s so great about living in my city. The media have always communicated the food bank story effectively and local citizens respond almost immediately. Wherever I journeyed in the last couple of days there have been words of encouragement and thanks beyond just the regular Christmas good wishes.And then 3M, one of London’s historic and generous companies, phoned and asked us to meet them at the food bank for a cheque donation. By the end of their visit with us they had left us a generous cheque of over $14,000. Even as they were presenting their donation trucks were pulling in with food donations from across the city.Sometimes Santa comes early, and for all the right reasons. People are in need, with poverty spreading and joblessness still stuck at stubbornly high levels, but for a few moments people turn their minds and their wallets towards those on the margins. I live in that kind of town. A special thanks to 3M and all those who opted to move the clock up a little to make sure that families weren’t doing without. When times are tough, Christmas can often come late. In London, Ontario, as with so many Canadian communities, good citizens, corporate and individual, reverse that trend and in the process improve the quality of life in our city. It's not the solution to poverty, but it takes the chill off. God bless them all.http://youtu.be/cPgtR69FfwU