OCALA, FL (352today.com) – For one Ocala-based business, it’s become a yearly tradition to brighten the lives of some very good girls and boys.
On Monday afternoon, a van full of every kind of toy you might imagine arrived at the Boys & Girls Club of Marion County.
The “elves” making the delivery in this case were employees from DeLuca Toyota. The dealer marked its 45th anniversary this year.
“All the toys we have brought in here 90 to 95 percent of it was provided by our employees,” said Frank DeLuca, owner/president of the auto dealership. “I’m just thankful to them for all they have done for the Boys and Girls Club.”
“With collection items being down and donations also down, this is just fantastic to see the items come in for the kids,” said April Savarese, CEO of the club.
She says the families the club serves are struggling right now, and the holidays are going to tough for them financially. “For a lot of our kids, these are the gifts they’re going to get from Santa,” added Savarese.
But donations like this one from DeLuca Toyota also serve another purpose. Savarese explained that it helps stock the club’s holiday store that they set up to allow kids to come shop for others in their family.
“The kids will come in and use ‘club bucks’ – not true money – to come in and shop the store for the holiday,” explained Savarese. “We’ll have volunteers helping them shop and then wrap the items so that they can take them home. They have a sense of pride of being able to give gifts to others.”