You tip your waiter, who brings you food from the next room.

You tip your valet, who parks your car in a nearby garage.

You tip your pizza delivery person, who drives across town to bring you food.

No matter what newspaper you receive, make sure during the holiday season you leave a gift for your newspaper carrier, too. Many carriers walk miles all over your neighborhood each day. Others drive miles all over the countryside. They go a long way for the simple convenience of having some paper and ink delivered to your house.

And unlike waiters, valets and pizza delivery people, newspaper carriers are not direct employees. They are independent contractors, working hard in all kinds of conditions to make extra income. It’s admirable.

You bump into waiters, valets and pizza delivery people only now and then; the newspaper carriers do it for you nearly every day.

And they watch out for your neighborhood. They notice when something is out of place and help elderly customers, even sometimes, like one brave boy last year, saving lives.

So please include them on your shopping list.

And thank you for reading newspapers.