Thanks to the students and teachers at Penticton Secondary School, a charitable pre-Christmas Penticton tradition that's bounced between venues for much of the last decade in unfolding brilliantly today in what may well be its new permanent home.
The basic premise of Toys for Tots to Teens is simple. Those who have the resources give toys to families who don't have the resources. And on Christmas morning, a lot of kids in tough circumstances get to unwrap gifts they may not have otherwise received. It's a superb idea that's duplicated in communities across the country.
And now, if this year's Toys for Tots to Teens organizers have their way, the event will be a Pen High mainstay.
Sandra Richardson is the school's Vice Principal and Leadership teacher, and she was all smiles this morning. "This event has been ongoing for many years in our community, and it's moved for location to location to location. And I thought, along with our other vice principal and Leadership teacher Bo Boxall, this is something we could do, and do a good job of it. And it's a way our kids can give back to the community. And they were all over it."
Indeed they were. If you brought a gift through Pen High's main doors this morning between 7 and 9 a.m., you were treated like royalty. You walked a red carpet and were officially greeted, you swapped your gift for a breakfast ticket, you enjoyed a live band or choir as you dined, and you watched as young Rotarians and members of the Penticton Vees sorted and stacked hundreds of toys on a row of tables long enough to span the length of the school's cafeteria.
And Pentictonites responded en masse. The place was jammed the entire time. There were families, guys and gals on their way to work, Santa, students of course, and even firefighters (complete with a fire truck).
The mayor was there, as were students for other schools. The Kindergarten and Grade One classes from Queens Park Elementary showed up in a school bus, each teeny tiny student bearing a gift.
Breakfast is now over, but the organizers will continue to accept gifts right to 4 p.m. in "drive thru" fashion. Bring a gift, get a coffee and goodie to go.
Heading the charge from the student side were Leadership classmates Katie Foreman and Matthew MacDonald.
"We jumped on board right away," said Foreman during a quick break in the action.
"I've been involved in Toys for Tots since I was a little kid. I used to sing in that choir like those kids," she said, pointing to the stage.
"It's been an event since as long as I can remember, but it's moved around in the last few years and hasn't been as big lately. We'd like to keep it here from now on. We think it's a great venue. The flow of everything in the space right now is really great."
"Matthew and I both agree that Christmas is such a special time for a lot of people, and we want to help out those families that don't have that much. It's hard for kids seeing other kids get toys when they don't have anything. So our goal is that every single kid in need is given a gift so they have a little light at Christmas."
The event is still going strong. If you have a moment, buy a toy or bring a good condition used toy and get yourself down to Penticton Secondary before 4 p.m. Katie and Matthew and everyone involved would be psyched if you did.
