Photo for Headline Surfer® / At left is Jamarri Gould, 4, with his grandma, Veronica Dickson. He lives with her in Daytona Beach. The 24/7 internet newspaper is going to share Christmas Eve with him with a special wrapped toy and other presents that were donated by an anonymous person who read a Facebook posting about the grandmother's plea for her grandson to have something for Christmas.
Above, YouTube upload of the 1984 famine-relief song, "Do They Know It's Christmas (Feed the World)" by Band-Aid.
DAYTONA BEACH -- There is no song I know of that quite hits home as a college kid from the Big '80s than Band-Aid's 1984 famine-relief fundraising song, "Do They Know it's Christmas" with its refrain, "Feed the World."
As we wind down the year and look ahead to 2014, this 30-year-old song resonates as strongly today as it did then.
There are many among us suffering with little hope for things getting better. As you finish your Christmas shopping, remember there are people among us -- especially the most vulnerable -- small children and the elderly, who are hungry, cold and lonely.
For the struggling and impoverished among us, the holidays can be especially cruel, knowing they are the forgotten ones. Daytona Beach, home of the "World's Most Famous Beach," and Daytona International Speedway with its signature race, the Daytona 500, has far too many families struggling to survive. Far too often, they are forgotten and ignored with all of the hype surrounding the beachside and its core tourism.
Each of us can make the difference in the lives of these families and so many others elsewhere by doing what I'm doing: Spending a few dollars on a cheap toy for a little kid who otherwise would go without. I say it this way to make a point: You don't have to break rthe bank to make a difference.
Each of us can make the difference in the lives of these families and so many others elsewhere by doing what I'm doing: Spending a few dollars on a cheap toy for a little kid who otherwise would go without. I say it this way to make a point: You don't have to break rthe bank to make a difference.
I'm going to give a toy fire truck to a 4-year-old boy, Jamarri Gould, who lives with his grandmother in Daytona, a pre-schooler, who otherwise would have gone without. My wife picked up this fire truck (with buttons pressed making siren sounds) at Walmart in Lake Mary. It cost a whole six bucks.
But to this boy, who lives with his grandmother (and she's out of work), this little present is like a million bucks.
I'm no better than anyone else and I'm no saint, but I am a Christian. It has been a tough year for us economically this year, even having to move, but the new year brings renewed opportunity for us.
Please do something to help someone less fortunate around you during the holidays. You could bake some cookies, or drop off some non-perishable foods. Anything to help the less fortunate among us is always a gift from God -- and a blessing to us all.