With Christmas right around the corner, the Salvation Army held their annual community-driven toy distribution Thursday.
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“Today everything comes to a head,” Ryan Ray with Salvation Army said in an interview with News Center 7. “The combination of all the hard work, all the time, all the money that the community has put in to supply Christmas for the kids in this community.”
Ray has worked with the Salvation Army for 16 years now and has seen the program grow from serving hundreds of kids, to now thousands.
The Salvation Army was able to give out 275 bikes this year, and provide gifts for 3,000 kids within the community.
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Ray hopes this toy distribution sends a statement to families in the community that the Salvation Army has their back.
“We got you, we’re going to take care of you,” Ray said.
Mia Evans, who recently had her first son, spokes with News Center 7 about how this distribution helped her as a child and now helps her provide for her own kid.
“It just makes me feel great because you want your kid to have a good Christmas,” Evans said.