You know how on Christmas morning, moms and dads gather to watch the smiles on the faces of their children when they open presents? Of course you do. It’s easy to see the direct happiness that comes as a result of giving.

Well, wouldn’t it be great if you could see the smiles on the faces of people in need who benefit from your donations to the United Way and to the Salvation Army? Imagine waking up on the day after Christmas and seeing the thanks of all the strangers your donations benefit: parents whose child now can read, a man who avoided homelessness in the cold winter, a Special Olympian who gets to swim competitively, a family who received clothing after losing their house in a fire, a girl who goes to summer camp to cope with the death of a father, a boy who isn’t a latch-key kid after school, a senior who learns to provide care to a dear friend who suffers from Alzheimer’s.

We encourage the people in the Albert Lea area to be in the Christmas spirit, if they aren’t already. Being in the Christmas spirit means giving to people we know and, especially, to people we don’t know. It means providing for the less-fortunate ones. It is a time to be in the Christian spirit of helping out and not being selfish.

Give to the United Way of Freeborn County at your workplace and drop a buck or two when you see the Salvation Army’s red kettles. These organizations do a whole lot of good for the communities in the county, and without your generosity and warmth, those good deeds go away.

These organizations feed the hungry, clothe the homeless, check in on the lonely, bolster literacy and find new ways to do good in the communities of Freeborn County.

You don’t always see them, but should the day come when tragedy knocks you and yours down, you will find they are the safety net that keeps people in our communities from falling to rock bottom. They and the organizations they support indeed are there — usually sooner than anyone ever expects the help.

The United Way also can be seen through your windshield as you drive around. Here are a few of the organizations they support: Albert Lea Family Y, Cedar Valley Services, Parenting Resource Center, The Children’s Center — and the Salvation Army, too.

And there are many familiar programs the United Way provides support for — from senior meals to senior centers and from early childhood education to adult basic education. Your donations help with needs from housing to trafficking to even finding winter coats for children.

The list is long. The administration cost is low. The staffs do a good job of landing grants to help their missions, and the workers and volunteers truly are solution-oriented to the giant tasks they take on for the good of all of us.

You will find the “united” in United Way to mean instead of being asked by many programs to help out so often, you are asked this time of year — at the holidays.

So, please, remember to give.