As the semester comes to an end, many students are eager and ready to enjoy the upcoming winter holidays, and give and also receive presents. However, some individuals are less fortunate during this time of year and are unable to receive many material goods.
This semester, the San Diego Community College District Police Department, The American Federation of Teachers Guild and club Bridging the Gap have coordinated gift drives for children and the homeless this season.
The Police Department is partnering with the A.B. and Jessie Polinksy Center in order to collect unwrapped gifts. Suggested items include toys, clothing, personal hygiene items, and arts and crafts gifts. Collection bins are located at various sites in the district such as all of the campuses, as well as the police office at City College in the V building and facility offices. All toys will be collected on Dec. 15 by 6 p.m.
AFT has joined forces with San Diego-Imperial Counties Labor Council for the council’s toy drive, which benefits unemployed workers’ children. The Holiday Toy Drive will be held on Dec. 15 at the San Diego Labor Council office. AFT is collecting donations for the drive before the semester ends. Items can be dropped off in the faculty workroom in AH-507 by noon on Dec. 14.
Club Bridging the Gap has partnered with nonprofit organization Love Thy Neighbor to donate new toys and clothing to children and gently worn clothing to the homeless for the fifth annual Love Thy Neighbor Clothing and Toy Drive. The donation drive will take place at Centro Cultural de la Raza in Balboa Park on Dec. 14 from noon to 8 p.m.
The drive will benefit children of the YWCA as well as families of The Training Center in Spring Valley.
The event will showcase art from many local artists such as Wendy Wolf, Roma Sanchez and ShoLove. A collection by inmates from the Soledad State Prison will also be featured.
Bridging the Gap was invited by organizer Ruben Torres, who is in charge of the event.
Club President Robert Crouse said Torres approached him at the Don’t Be a Bully fundraiser event that Bridging the Gap showcased in September and asked if the club could get involved with the drive.
“Ruben Torres asked me then to be involved with this, and said, ‘How cool would it be to hold this thing at City College or have a big thing for outreach in the center of SD?’” he commented.
Crouse said he quickly thought of a similar idea to set up multiple donation bins around campus for students to drop off donated toys for children. However, the idea came too late after realizing he needed extra time to arrange, supply and spread word of the donation bins.
He later explained he plans to go forth with this idea next fall semester, in December 2015.
For more information about the donation drives, email Kelly Mayhew for the AFT drive at [email protected]. For the Police Department toy drive, call (619) 388-6411, and visit www.lovethyneighbormovement.com.
