This is a time for joy and giving, but for many children, the holiday spirit can be dampened by a lack of gifts.
Action for Boston Community Development, a Dorchester-based nonprofit, is running a toy drive to stop that from happening, but they haven’t received a single donation this season.
“We haven’t received any donations as of yet for this year,” organizer Bianny Suncar told NBC10 Boston Monday, while showing the remaining inventory from last year.
ABCD needs approximately 6,500 toys to serve at least 800 families this season. Organizers are asking people to drop off their donations at their Dorchester location by Friday during normal business hours.
Toy requests include puzzles and sports equipment for ages 10 to 12, educational games for toddlers and dolls and cars for the ages in between.
“The sooner or earlier in December that we’re able to do that, the better,” Suncar said. “Toys is just one of those things that people don’t think about as a need but, when it comes to the season, it’s really hard for a family to be like wow, I can’t make Christmas happen this year.”
Organizers say the need is greater this year. Even Boston Mayor Michelle Wu’s office is expanding their efforts six-fold this season, going from one site to six and donating 1,800 toys starting Thursday.
“Every single child deserves to experience the joys of the holiday season,” Wu said in a statement. “We are blessed to have the opportunity to partner with so many businesses and community organizations to bring the holiday spirit and some fun toys to families across our city.”
Organizers say every gift, no matter how small, can make a big difference.
“Oh, they’re ecstatic,” Suncar said. “They’re so thankful that we can help them in any way that we can. It’s really nice to see it.”
