Christmas Comes Early As Toy Drive Gathers Close To 500 Gifts

A CHARITY toy drive has led to around 500 toys being collected for children in care with Batshaw Youth and Family Centres.

Despite the snowfall last Saturday morning, 20 employee volunteers from MSC Canada turned out to host their inaugural seasonal toy drive at Place Vertu Shopping Mall.

The determined team set out to fill a 20-foot shipping container with new toys, which could be given to children in foster care and group homes in Montreal throughout the holiday season.

MSC invited staff, business partners, and the local community to join them in donating toys and giving back to children who might otherwise not receive anything from Santa. As a thank you for donating, Santa was on-hand, taking pictures with the children.

The company also served coffee and hot chocolate, generously donated by Union Coffee.

The day resulted in MSC collecting close to 500 toys, all of which will be delivered to Batshaw Youth and Family Centres, part of the Montreal West Island Integrated University Health and Social Services Centre.

To make sure no child would go without a gift, the company made an additional contribution for every toy donated, and at the end of the day presented representatives from Batshaw with a cheque for $10,000 with which to purchase additional gifts.

“A big thank you goes out to all the MSC staff, clients, and business partners who joined us on Saturday and were incredibly generous with their donations,” said Sokat Shaikh, President & CEO of MSC Canada.

“I am extremely proud of our team’s commitment to the community, and we will continue to look for other opportunities to move help where it’s needed.”

Batshaw Youth and Family Centres have been collecting and delivering toys to children in foster care and group homes in Montreal for over 30 years.

Last year, they were able to give toys to approximately 1,000 children between the ages of 0 and 18.

This year, they hope to deliver toys to approximately 1,400 children.