The Spirit of Christmas

Notes from Tess:

Most of the blogs posted here are structured.

This occasion is different.

There is not one reason why I would want to sugar coat anything that happen last night at the Sharon L Vanover Memorial Dinner held at the Yellowrose Theater.

The spirit of Christmas is BIGGER than any one person on this earth. The employees/volunteers focused on who Christmas is REALLY about...

Walk in the door and hear: "Good Evening, Welcome to the Yellowrose Theater. We are glad you are here." Said to every guest... every time the door opened.

Got settled as a volunteer and started scooping cranberry sauce for the 140 plates that were being made for underprivileged kids and their families.

Time to open the doors and seat tables. Each family takes a picture with Santa Clause and every table is sat by a hostess that carries the guests bags and coats to their seats.

Every table has a waitress that takes the orders for drinks and gets everything the guests ask for.. knowing they are not gonna get a tip or get paid.. they will get a "Thank You" at best.

Back in the kitchen, everyone knows their role. Like this was the 1,000th time they had all done this.

The plates are being assembled by cooks, expo hands out plates, bussers clean tables and the dishwasher is washing and putting things away.

I find out later that the exop, dishwasher and most wait staff are all in the show. They take off their aprons, wash their hands and get on stage as if they were preforming in a play on Broadway.

The show starts and the whole room is filled with laughter and tears. All in disbelief that someone would do all this for them and ask for nothing in return.

Intermission begins and more plates flood the kitchen, all needing to be cleaned.

Myself and an older woman clean all the plates and put them away...With a smile.

The show comes to a close and every child in the place gets 3+ presents. Announcements are being read but the joy and giggling is too loud for anyone to hear anything.

Not one time did I ever hear anyone have a bad attitude, whine or gripe about anything. Volunteers did what needed to be done. No matter where the need, there was no person that was "too good" to do anything!

I can hear one child in the background talking to the pastor dressed as Santa: "My mom told me Santa was not going to make it to our house this year but I am glad to know she was wrong."

Sharon L Vanover is beaming from heaven. Her family did her proud... and made more than one person's Christmas.

This dinner will become a volunteer tradition for me every year!

The Business of Giving

By: Guest Blogger King Kosher

Most of the products that we use are made in other countries and our nation’s economy is now dependent on customer service. The service industry is America’s life-blood, and if you are a savvy small business owner, you can make this work wonders for your business by…. Donating!

“But how does donating to charity increase my ROI?”

Most charities are 501 (c) 3 corporations, this means that they are tax-exempt AND people who give to them receive tax deductions. But everyone knows that. Here’s what you may not know:

• According to recent polls, 81% of shoppers say that price and quality being equal, they'd switch brands if the competing brand was associated with a good cause.
• Donating to a non-profit with a “house-hold” name is a great way to advertise your company and make your adverting dollars tax-deductible, up to 50%!
• Becoming a sponsor also gives you the chance to meet other sponsors and make new and possibly, priceless business contacts.
• Many companies donate a percentage of their profits to charities. In-kind, the charities will promote their product &/or service to boost sales, increase their revenue and thus making money for their organization.
• If you need a street team to promote your company just hire a non-profit! By donating money to a non-profit in exchange for the work of their members, you not only have a bunch of temporary employees but their services are tax deductible up to 50%, because paying them for whatever reason is the same is making a donation.

We all have passions, principles and beliefs. Serving other people not only makes us feel good, but it can also help sales. When people have more money they most often times feel more generous.

I guess the old saying is true; “It is better to give than to receive.”

To check out more from the author visit www.chickenfriedpoetry.com