Happy Holidays!

As the holiday season begins to wind to a close, we want to take this opportunity to thank everyone who stepped up to help those in need. This time of year usually brings out the best in people. Judging from the number of announcements we received from our readers regarding donation drives, it looks like this year was no exception.

Last year, Hurricane Sandy created an immediate need in many communities. This year, some of those communities were still in need of help. Food banks were running low after sending supplies to those communities hit hard by the storm.

The same with those who help with clothing, and even toys.

Over the past few weeks, we have had the pleasure of publishing stories about efforts to lend a hand. Like always, there were the usual Toys for Tot drives and more. We don’t keep a formal count of the number of holiday fundraising event stories we publish from year to year, but it certainly seemed that, in 2013, there were many.

So, we thank those individuals and groups who organized these efforts. And, on behalf of them, we also thank everyone who picked up an extra can of non-perishable food, an additional bag of dog food, one more toy and more. To all of those who reached a little deeper into their wallets this year to help out, your generosity truly made a difference.

We wish everyone a happy holiday season and hope for a wonderful 2013.