By Sara Khalafi
Many children are not as fortunate as some of us during the holiday season, especially when it comes to receiving presents. That is why Chabad kindly holds the annual Toy Drive on Ring Road every year. Toy drives are a great way to support a very worthy cause and bringing smiles to the faces of underprivileged children.
This year we held the Toy Drive for two days on Monday and Tuesday November 21st and 22nd, in order to give a variety of students and staff the opportunity to contribute to this heartwarming cause. The way the Toy Drive works is the toys are pre-bought from a local store and then they are displayed for people to see along UCI’s Ring Road. Once someone decided to contribute, all they had to do was give a dollar, choose a toy that they felt a child would like, and then write a nice holiday message to the children with the outcome being a very happy child! To show Chabad’s gratitude to those who contributed, we gave them a delicious homemade cookie or brownie as well.
Overall, I am proud to say that Chabad of UCI helped collect about 300 toys for the children at the local hospitals and other charities. The toys will be distributed sometime during Finals week before students leave for winter break. I am very excited to see the smiles on the children’s faces especially during this beautiful holiday season. Chabad definitely went all out for this one and I must say we have a very convincing and persuading team.