Salvation Army hands out hundreds of toys in Newark to help brighten holidays
NEWARK, New Jersey (WABC) -- The Salvation Army is playing the role of Santa's helper and delivering gifts to children this holiday season.
While Santa's bag full of goodies is usually red, on Friday in Newark it was blue.
"When you see their faces and they see the quality of the gifts, they're just so blessed because they don't know what they're walking into," volunteer Bettina Freelance said.
"I said this year I had a struggle and I needed some type of support so I reached out," parent Miciana McCray said.
The Salvation Army handed out hundreds of toys all day on Friday.
And instead of blindly distributing a preselected bag of gifts, for the first time, parents could choose gifts based on their child's age and wish list.
And you might consider Northern New Jersey Santa's workshop. There are sprawling hills, snow and 39,000 toys.
"We start this process in September, contacting companies, we have about 30 companies that helped us this year," said Major Joy Jugenheimer with The Salvation Army Greater New York
And they may not be sleighs, but vans and SUVs at the Salvation Army camp in Bloomingdale help deliver even more donated toys - bringing joy to children who made the nice list this year.
ALSO READ | 7 On Your Side's Holiday Shopping Guide
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