Over the three days of Dec. 3 through Dec. 5, 2020, Edenton Lions and friends helped the kettle krowd gather gifts.

Lions are sporting red vests showing the Salvation Army motto Doing the Most Good. The signature hand bells ring. Strangers relax when they hear the music! Friendships resurface or comfortably begin.

Known for their work with the hearing and visually impaired, Lions are now known for helping the other Army.

Members of various faith communities join in manning the buckets!

Sharing Time is even more important this year as the pandemic of COVID-19 remains among us. Nearly everyone shows up with mask on. Excellent! Nippy weather quickens some steps.

Eyes are alert and forward. Many are unglued from iPhones in their hands. Good. Since Thanksgiving many have relearned to enjoy others face to face!

We care....We wear is on one cheek of Lions face mask. We Serve on the other cheek notes 83 years of service 1937-2020.

Chilly temps today are harbingers of severe cold to come. Community needs food on the table, clothes on the back, heat in the house and a roof overhead to keep out the rain.

Familiar greetings ring out. Hows the family? Whatcha been doing lately?

Whats for lunch? Whos cooking? Whos paying? Grub with or without calories?

Shadboat Willis is among the first to be at his station. Notices new unwrinkled greenbacks. George, Thomas and Abe crowd into the red buckets. Nothing like new money without the smell of tobacco juice, snuff or fish!

Eye contacts multiply as folk approach business entrances.

Lions initiate light conversation. Yes, coins are welcome here... You seriously welcome pennies and dimes!? Yes, all day long. We appreciate all gifts and givers.

I notice a friend exiting Food Lion. Where is your good-looking lady today? Home, she gave you folks too much last year! There is mischief in his eye. I suspect he does more than his fair share of good trouble today.

Ole Tar Heel looks around and is surprised.

Recognizes nice lady approaching but who is the small one she is carrying? Is this the 4th Wise Man? No, its Grogu the baby Yoda from the Disney+ show The Mandalorian! Lady shushes me. Explains in a whisper that her hubbie is a secret admirer of the Star Wars celebrity. Gag Christmas gift. Stifle your wise-cracks! No autographs until after Christmas! Or tweets either! Lady hustles to her pick-up truck and discreetly place Grogu in a secret place! Darn.

Others arrive. People thin out then regroup. Approaching my post is a vivacious 4th-grader with a head of red hair! Followed by grandmother type. This should be interesting.

Young lass jumps for joy! Spies coins on the pavement. Bends to retrieve a new quarter and two super-new bright Lincoln pennies. While others slip their gifts into the kettle bucket I eye the youngster.

Instead of pocketing her treasure Emma heads my way. Points to the red kettle. Yes! Wants to know if we accept small coins. Yes, all gifts are welcome! Cute as a speckled puppy! Emma tells me of life in the 4th grade.

Have I ever been in the fourth grade? Before I can answer, we are talking rivers like the Amazon, the Nile, the Ganges and the Mississippi. Silently I wonder to myself, Is this the little red-haired girl that Charlie Brown has been seeking all his life?

Friday I am posted to Roses, having been assigned to Food Lion on Thursday and Saturday. After a time, I notice a young woman with two one-dollar bills in hand leaving the store. Her clothing is clean but simple. For whatever reason, I asked her why she donates.

She tells of growing up in Perquimans County. In January or February while age 14, the house she and her parents lived in burned to the ground. Completely gone. Brutally cold weather. No family or neighbors to take them in. Somehow the Salvation Army found a simple place the threesome could live in through spring. It was dry enough that she could do her homework for school. Family survived the winter.

She muses, I have never forgotten that kindness. I can never repay. But I remember. That is why I give two dollars. That is how I say, Thank You.

Folks, your gifts are a major benefit in the life of real people today. Readers who are still with me will be delighted to know that the public of December 2020 has been most generous. Significantly better than 2019 which was good too. Difficult challenges have not overwhelmed us.

Thank you for being true to the best any of us know.

Meanwhile, Lions continue to mask up. Hope you will too.

We care. We wear. We serve.

New members welcome, especially red heads!

John Mitchener is past president of the Edenton Lions Club, 2010-11.

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Giving season is here: It is 'sharing time' in Edenton - The Daily Advance