A Faithful Servant

 The families stand out in Ron Pearson’s mind. The Southside painter badly injured in a fire on the highway several years ago who was facing his 25th surgery on Christmas Day, but counted his blessings when a donation from United Christmas Service appeared at his door. The New Palestine grandmother who needed help for her grandkids at Christmas and ended up with something special for herself, courtesy of volunteers who felt compelled to do more than donate money. Each year since 1952, United Christmas Service put on its twinkle lights and tried to bring a little cheer into the homes of Central Indiana’s neediest residents. Through it all, and for over 35 years, at the helm has been Ron Pearson. A retired marketing and public relations executive, Pearson chaired United Christmas Service until hanging up his Santa hat this past year. Throughout his tenure, Pearson devoted more than 75 hours each year to assist families with the greatest needs. He raised hundreds of thousands of dollars, led by example and used his professional expertise in public relations and marketing to generate over $300,000 of in-kind support. Ron engages his personal network – including the longtime support of his church, St. Luke’s Methodist Church – to help United Christmas Service reach its ambitious goals. Ron possesses a true understanding of the difficult situations facing many of Central Indiana’s neediest families, and the challenges they face as they work towards self-sufficiency. Through it all, he approaches the challenge of meeting the needs of so many with passion – undaunted by the task. Or if he was daunted, you would never know. Otherwise, how else would he be able to raise nearly half a million dollars in less than three months, year after year? Another family that stands out for Ron is his own. Through the years Ron’s wife and children have been an integral part of the giving to United Christmas Service. "It may sound trite, but as you give you also receive. It's brought our family together. It's the spirit of Christmas - giving, sharing," shares Ron’s wife, Sally Pearson. That’s what is at the heart of United Christmas Service: compassion. “Central Indiana is a very loving community,” says Ron Pearson. We couldn’t agree more. Let’s rise to the occasion and prove Ron Pearson right. It will certainly be a way to honor him and his decades of faithful service to so many. Are you excited to sing?! On the eleventh Day of Giving, United Way gave to me…eleven holiday angels, ten fun facts, nine special memories, eight Santa hats, seven Honda engines, six more families served, five volunteer hours, four Christmas ornaments, three Merry Money vouchers, two cheerful bothers, and one way to help my community.