Tis the season to be jolly and spread some holiday cheer. With the holiday’s right around the corner, our Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast wanted to bring some joy to our Club families and community this month.

Hundreds of children experienced the magic of the holiday season at our annual Winter Wonderland event, this year being presented by loanDepot. Each child picked a special toy of their choice, walked through Santa’s workshop, took a picture with Santa & Mrs. Claus, and had some hot cocoa and cookies.

Toy donations and support from our community partners made an impact in a total of 1,007 children this holiday season – 143 in Costa Mesa, 348 in Orange, and 516 in Santa Ana!

This event couldn’t have been possible without the support of every individual, partner, and volunteer that champions our youth. Sponsors for this year’s event include:

Over 50 volunteers were involved this year, some of which include our friends from loanDepot, Irvine Company, Culligan Water, and Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Orange Coast board members Nicole Carrillo Hall, Raul Jara, and Yvonne Herrell. In addition to volunteers, we had some pretty amazing community partners host toy drives for our Club, including Colliers, Kiwani’s Club of Costa Mesa, Irvine Company, loanDepot, and ServiceFirst Restoration.

In addition to our Winter Wonderland toy drive, 12 Club members were invited to go on a shopping spree brought on by Los Angeles Chargers player, Derwin James and his friends at DICK’s Sporting Good. Each child had the opportunity to hand pick their favorite gear just in time for the holidays.

Not only did we give out hundreds of toys to our Club youth and community, we also provided our families with resources to strengthen their entire unit. Thanks to the Nutrition Gap Program from the Orange County Board of Supervisors, we served 160 families in Costa Mesa, providing each with a $250 grocery gift card. This program is aimed to support the nutritional needs of our most vulnerable population impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The holiday season is all about spending time with loved ones and cherishing special moments, and the collective impact of our community helped make the holidays extra special for Club families who otherwise wouldn’t of had the opportunity this season. From the bottom of our hearts, THANK YOU for helping us make an impact to every child and family we serve.

To learn how to increase your impact, please contact Director of Corporate Relations & Cause Partnerships, David Blair.