Twenty-eight students from Melrose and Hucrest Elementary schools were paired with members of the Roseburg Elks Lodge No. 326 or other volunteers for the Elk’s annual John Little’s Kids Back to School Shopping Spree.

There’s a great phrase I used to hear from my mother in high school — when it was surprisingly poignant — that time equals intimacy. I have found that to be true with people, but it seems to have a greater reach than just relationships in the form of influence.