Please give gift of Christmas to some deserving children

LYNN – Mother Nature has certainly decided to make it look like the season outside and seeing the smiles on kids? faces as they run around and frolic in the snow reminds you of what that season is all about.The look in their eyes as they see Christmas lights and pretty decorated trees all over the place is a sight that never really gets old.For 43 years, the readers of this newspaper and local businesses have helped the Item Santa make this time of year something to remember for people unable or not fortunate enough to provide for their loved ones.Back in 1897, a little girl named Virginia asked her father if there was a Santa Claus. Her father asked her to write a letter to a prominent newspaper in New York to see if there was any way they could find out if the man with a red suit and beard existed.The response that one of the editors of that paper crafted is perhaps one of the best definitions of believing and it still applies today.The editor wrote: “Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus.”For these past years, our readership in its own way has had a chance to keep that mystique going as your donations help you play Santa Claus in a little way.Being someone who has seen the smile on his niece?s face when she looks at our glowing Christmas tree, it tears at the heart to think of children without that chance.So when you?re running around looking for that last minute gift or stocking stuffer, keep in mind that the true spirit of Christmas still abounds in all of us.To make a donation to Item Santa, clip the coupon on Page B6 in today?s Item and mail it, along with your check, to The Item Salvation Army Santa, P.O. Box 951, Lynn, MA 01903.For more info, call the Salvation Army at 781-598-0673.