Charities Coming Up Short On Toys

Wednesday, December 19th 2007, 9:28 pm

By: News On 6

Donations to Christmas charities are down this year, due in part to the ice storm. But, Christmas is just around the corner and Santa needs a little extra help to make the holidays special for Tulsa-area children. News On 6 anchor Omar Villafranca reports Santa may have a tough time keeping a date with a school heâ€™s been visiting every year.

Mr. Claus has been a regular at McKinley Elementary School. He's shown up in the past to hand out gifts to good boys and girls. The News On 6 caught up with Santa and one of his helpers as he was getting ready for the big day. They can't wait to see the kids faces when they hand out the toys.

"They're excited. That's the only gift they're going to get possibly all year. Where other kids are going to get two or three presents under the tree, they get nothing, except for what we bring to them,â€ said Santaâ€™s stylist Celeste King.

The Marines at Toys for Tots usually help out with the gifts, but this year donations have been significantly reduced.

â€œWe're having a lot more groups hit us up and a lot more individual families that didn't foresee hard times that have fallen on hard times because money went to a generator and bills or a chainsaw,â€ said Marine Sgt. Will Schneider.

Santa needs some help.

They're looking for donations and toys to make Christmas a little brighter for the kids on the nice list.

"There is at least one little boy that wants a toy that works. Last year there was a little girl that wanted a blanket so she could be warm when she slept. We got her that, too," said Hans Pasco, one of Santaâ€™s helpers.

"All my kids have stuff. I can't leave one other kid out there without a toy. It just has to be done," added Celeste King.

If you want to help with a gift for the kids at McKinley Elementary, you can drop off a toy before noon Thursday at Braden Park Baptist Church at 4739 East 5th Street in Tulsa.

Watch the video: Toy Donations Still Needed

For more on Toys For Tots, click here.