Thumbs up to those who donate, volunteer during holidays

Thumbs up to all those who have conducted holiday service projects in the Pee Dee. Last week, students from Florence School District 5’s Therapeutic Behavioral Services traveled from Johnsonville to donate three large boxes of canned goods and dry staples to The Manna House, a nonprofit and non-denominational emergency food pantry and soup kitchen in Florence. The students started collecting items in November and have donated more than 100 items. Through the Florence 5 program, students as young as age 4 learn social skills, and about giving back and helping others, director Patricia Lewis said. Donating the goods to The Manna House, she said, was an opportunity for them to learn the meaning of giving. The Manna House, which needs donations all year round, accepts canned goods such as beef stew, potted meat, soups, vegetables and fruit, and dry items such as rice, pasta and instant coffee, as well as baby food and formula. For more information on how to donate or volunteer, call executive director Daphine Tedder at at (843) 667-6077. Monetary contributions also can be mailed to the charity, with checks payable to The Manna House, P.O. Box 13541, Florence, SC 29506.

Thumbs down to people who took Angel Tree tags (thereby “adopting” a family for Christmas) and then failed to return with their gift contributions. Some agencies had to scramble and plead with the public to make sure these families are not forgotten. Point: If you accept a responsibility, follow through. If you can’t, then at least have the decency to alert the agency so they have enough time to make other arrangements.

Thumbs up to the Prayer Shawl Knitting Ministry at Hartsville’s St. Luke’s Methodist Church. On Dec. 17, a few members of the group delivered scarves to the residents at Darlington County Disabilities and Special Needs Board’s Trantham House. The group, which meets every Wednesday at the church and includes women from other churches and needlework groups in Hartsville, usually knit prayer shawls for people undergoing treatment for cancer, but a few ladies performed the special project of knitting scarves for the men at Trantham House. Among them were Bernice Blackwell, Sue Bogardus, Peggy Gamble and Anna Williams. The Darlington County Disabilities and Special Needs Board is a nonprofit agency that serves more than 500 people with mental retardation, autism and head and spinal cord injuries throughout the county. In addition to service coordination, family support and day services for adults, the board provides residential services to 44 men and women in nine residential homes.

Thumbs up to people who are just saying no to debt this holiday season. In these hard economic times, many people are having to trim wish lists to match their current budget size. We applaud their efforts to downsize rather than run up credit card charges. Here’s to discipline!

Thumbs down to rude shoppers and store clerks. While the holidays are a busy time, let’s not get so caught up in the mad rush that we forget our humanity to one another. Before you snap, take a deep breath, smile and remember the reason for the season!