Most of us spent the last week feeling extra thankful — which tends to happen during Thanksgiving week. That thankfulness continued on Tuesday, when many people worldwide and locally gave back on Giving Tuesday, a day that exists for the purpose of providing financial assistance to nonprofits, organizations and causes worth getting behind.  

The two ideas — being thankful and giving back — tend to go hand-in-hand, especially this time of year when we keep in mind that not everyone has a warm place to stay and food to eat.

A couple of recent donations are helping make sure people are staying warm this winter. The LaGrange Junior Service League spent hours at the B-52s concert, raising money and collecting 185 blankets to donate to the local warming center, which opens when the temperature outside drops below 37 degrees.

The annual Thanksgiving Turkey Trot — a cold weather run to start the holiday — also took up blankets for the warming center. 

The blankets, as well as the money raised, will definitely help the warming center and those who go there to stay warm as the weather cools down. However, there are other needs as well. 

Mike Wilson, who oversees the center, said that the warming center needs microwave meals and drinks, but the biggest overall need is companionship. Wilson mentioned a teenager who volunteered several times last year, spending time just playing cards with people who stayed at the center.

We appreciate all of the people who work so hard in this community to give back each and every day, including the JSL and those who woke up early to run the Turkey Trot. 

The generosity of this community is one of the attributes that separates it from many others and makes it a great place to live.