The Santa Cruz Police Department paired up with Santa Claus this weekend and held a drive-thru toy giveaway to help kids in need have a better holiday.
A long line of cars ran through downtown Santa Cruz on Saturday, as families waited to pick up Christmas toys for their kids.
“It’s a tremendous help,” said one recipient. “Times are hard and they’re extra hard for us because we’re staying in a motel right now, so we’re really appreciative of this program.”
Officials said they were going to do a shop-with-a-cop event, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, they switched the plan to a drive-thru toy giveaway.
Sixty-five families and almost 200 kids benefited from the event and picked up toys for Christmas day.
“We’re trying to change the tone of the year 2020, right, making it a bright and happy holidays, especially for the kids,” said Deputy Chief Bernie Escalante.
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