Santa's Workshop needs community donations of new and gently used toys to help make Christmas special for Comox Valley families in need.
"It's a wonderful thing for people who just cannot afford to otherwise get things for their children, and for grandparents who find it difficult, as well," says media spokesperson Barb Metheral. "It's great for these little ones to have a smile on their faces when they've got some nice gifts."
New and gently used toys and bikes will be accepted until Dec. 13, and Metheral says the earlier the better for donation dropoffs, as the volunteers need time to clean and organize them before they're given out. Cash donations are also gladly accepted as they help purchase new gifts.
Santa's Workshop is located at 877 Fifth St. in Courtenay, and although roadwork is going on right in front of the building, donations are still accepted at the workshop. According to the City of Courtenay website, this roadwork is expected to be complete by Nov. 30.
Alternately, drop boxes are located in Courtenay at: Bank of Montreal, Baby Barn Boutique, Courtenay & District Museum, Curves, Dairy Queen, Fabricland, Habitat for Humanity, London Drugs, Mountain Ridge Tree Farm, SunWest Auto, You Are Not Alone and at the Driftwood Mall.
The Comox locations are: Coastal Community Credit Union, Comox Centre Mall, Scotia Bank and Slegg Lumber.
In particular, Metheral says toys suitable for older children are needed.
"There's always lots of stuff for little ones, two, three, four, six, seven, eight years old but after that there's never near as much," she says, adding the toy age range is from babies to 16 years.
More than 250 bikes were given out last year, and volunteers are busily cleaning donated bikes to give out this year. Parents and grandparents picked out gifts for nearly 800 Comox Valley children last year, thanks to community donations and the work of volunteers at Santa's Workshop.
Families can call the workshop at 250-897-1994 to make an appointment for gift selection, which happens from Dec. 2 to 20. The workshop is open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday during November, and it opens at 9 a.m. starting in December.
writer@comoxvalleyrecord.com