Students and staff at Winterfield Venture Academy recently gave back to their community by volunteering for 13abc’s Hope for the Holidays Toy Drive Bash. Local organizations, including 13abc, the Salvation Army, and the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves’ Toys for Tots teamed up to support families in the community throughout the holiday season.
This is the fourth year Mrs. Lakeisha Norrils, student family liaison at Winterfield, organized the volunteer opportunity for Winterfield’s scholars. “Each year the school is so grateful to give back to the Toledo community,” she said.
During their time volunteering, Winterfield students helped unload toys that were collected by the local police department and offered thank you gifts to the drivers who donated the toys. They also were able to meet the Toledo Mayor, Wade Kapszukiewicz, various local news personalities, and of course the big man himself, Santa Claus.
“It’s important to teach our scholars to give back to their communities because it teaches them character and gives them a sense of purpose,” said Norrils.
In addition to the volunteer work during the day of the event, Winterfield’s staff members also donated toys to the cause to help families in need through the Salvation Army. In the weeks leading up to the drive, teachers and staff brought in new toys to donate.
The annual Hope for the Holiday toy drive kicked off in mid-November and ran through mid-December. All collected toys were given to local families who were selected via an application process, through 13abc.