The 25th annual Anaheim Stuff-A-Bus drive was quite the success. The event managed to fill 21 buses with stuffed animals and toys for charity.
A very interesting cast of characters was there to help out the event, the OCRegister reports. Darth Vader, the Anaheim Ducks cheerleaders and many others were there to help guests.
The event is a collaboration by the Orange County Transportation Authority, ABC7 and the Honda Center, where the drive was held. The toys will be distributed by Toys For Tots, a charity founded by the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. Southland firefighters also help the collection through their Spark of Love campaign.
At first the OCTA sent more than a dozen buses. Several of them were already filled by noon. So, the OCTA sent even more busses to the parking lot. In the end – a total of 21 buses were properly filled with toys and stuffed animals.
And there’s more. Some of the toys were too big for the buses, so they were kept next to them. About 200 bikes were next to them. They were donated by Pancho’s Mexican Restaurant in Orange, OCTA spokesman Eric Carpenter said. “It’s really, I think, most heartening to see people that read about (the drive) … or see it on TV and take the time on their lunch hour” to buy a gift and drop it off, Carpenter said.
The Santa Ana Police also took part in the event. They sent the 5-month-old bloodhound Rosie who is still in training. She was with her police officer Robert Guidry. Guidry said she’d been to two other toy drives, where “She was a hit. She has her own hashtag” – #SAPDRosie.
The Marine Corps Reserve were also there. They were showing some demonstrations of equipment and other cool stuff. The 21 buses and their toys will make their way to kids in need in the region. Most of the toys should be in the kids’ hands for Christmas.
