Charities are having one of their hardest years raising money. Across the country, some agencies have experienced a decline in giving as high as 20 percent. But charities in Southeast Missouri have been much more fort~u~n~ate with contributions equal to or slightly less than previous years.

Nationally, the charitable downturn has been attributed to economic jitters. The competition for those charitable gifts has become fierce as state and federal subsidies to many of these agencies have diminished. Another influence across the country has been a lower degree of trust in charities, according to the National Charities Information Bureau.

But there's apparently no lack of trust here as our local charities continue to do well. Benefactors like to see their money at work in the community.

Despite shortfalls in some area campaigns, there's still plenty of community gener~osity to go around. Area residents have given hundreds of thousands of dollars to a number of campaigns in the last year.

* The Salvation Army recently met its record goal of $105,000. All of those dollars will stay at work in Cape Girardeau to finance a number of year-round programs and services.

* The Area Wide United Way came close to its goal - raising $436,700 to aid 26 local agencies. While the organization fell 8 percent short of its goal, the amount raised is still admirable.

* Southeast Missouri State University's first major capital campaign concluded in September with more than $28.5 million raised over the last two years. More than 13,000 people gave to this campaign from throughout the region. The Southeast Missouri University Foundation also surpassed its goal of $2.4 million for the new College of Business Administration building.

* More than 400 families received toys and $17,000 was raised through the Southeast Missourian and Cape Girardeau Jaycees' Toybox program. An additional $8,500 was given to Christmas for the Elderly, along with gifts to meet every request.

These are just a few of the many fund-raising campaigns that local residents support. They demonstrate the fact this is a very caring and generous area. There's little doubt people accept a personal responsibility to help their fellow man year round.

Nationally, charitable giving had increased steadily through the 1980s to $124 billion last year. But that philanthropic growth stalled in 1992. This year may be the first time in two decades that annual contributions to the nation's charities will decline. Although donations have fallen, the number of charities has exploded - growing from 561,000 in 1989 to 632,000 in 1990. For every charity that closed its doors in that time, three sprang up, according to the Better Business Bureau's philanthropic advisory service.

Again, this increase in the number of extended hands may explain the success of local campaigns. Contributors can see for themselves how these local charities and organizations improve people's lives. Such caring doesn't always make headlines, but it always makes a difference. We as a community are all the richer for it.