How One Person Can Make a Difference

Around the holidays I heard about how "Secret Santas" were paying layaway tabs for complete strangers at the K-Mart.  It started small and then gained momentum around the country.  I thought that was such an unselfish thing to do.  I bet that person (who I am sure wanted to remain anonymous) never thought that his/her random act of kindness would have such a huge impact. I have heard of other stories similar to that, such as going through a toll booth and paying for the person behind you or how a patron leaves a huge tip for the waitress.  Those are the kinds of stories that I like to read about. I remember one year my daughter, my dad and I took some food baskets that our church had put together and delivered them to a rent subsidized apartment complex around Thanksgiving or Christmas.   Most of the people living there had one room and everything they owned was contained in that one room.  The recipients of the food baskets were so incredibly appreciative and thanked us profusely.  We came away from that experience very humbled for what we have, realizing others have so little.  I think one of the best things we can teach our children is that one person does make a difference.  Teaching our children that there is always someone less fortunate than themselves makes them really appreciate what they have.  As we head towards 2012, what are some ways that you can find for you and your family to give back and make a difference for others?