[Editor’s Note: One in a series about how community members recall and celebrate Christmas.]
[img]2298|right|David Voncannon||no_popup[/img]“Christmas is that time of the year,” says David Voncannon, community activist, “when you try to think about others than yourself.
“There are so many people in the world far less fortunate than we are. We need to look beyond ourselves to see what we can do to help others. This is a time to think about your spirituality, about your faith. This is a time to think beyond what your world is today.”
Such an attitude leads directly into action for Mr. Voncannon.
“There are a number of things you can do,” he said. “A spirit of giving is in order. But there are many charitable events – like Operation Gratitude, which puts together Care packages for active military, and also for families of military people who were not so lucky, who did not come home.
“Operation Heartfelt, down on the Santa Monica Pier,” Mr. Voncannon said, “is for the disadvantaged children of Los Angeles County. This charity gives children a chance to come down and get presents that they might not otherwise get. Also they can interact with farm animals. Some of them never have seen a live cow or goat or lamb.”
Isn’t it remarkable that when a street-corner reporter asks a passerby, such as the accomplished Mr. Voncannon, about the way he and his family observe Christmas, he immediately talks of helping others?
A native of Winston-Salem, NC, Mr. Voncannon, in his classy, unmistakable Dixie accent, said that when he was a boy, “Christmas always meant family. I had a sister seven years younger than I. My mother always cooked for a large group of people. She was a marvelous cook. She enjoyed cooking. She made hard dishes look easy. She put together incredible meals.
“I’ll never forget particularly my mother getting my father to taste the dressing that went with the turkey and the ham,” said Mr. Voncannon, as if it had happened yesterday. “That was his specialty. He couldn’t mix but he could taste. He was the chief taste tester.”
(To be continued)
