Gloucester Township police are asking residents to bring new, unwrapped toys to the department’s watch desk through Dec. 15 for its Stuff a Truck campaign
The effort began as a way to help township residents ease the difficulties of the holiday season.
A similar campaign – Mayor David Mayer’s Christmas toy drive – is conducted in conjunction with Stuff a Truck. Residents can stop by the mayor’s office to drop off unused toys and the township will help deliver presents to area families.
Community Relations Bureau commander Lt. Melissa Capanna looks forward to the turnout of residents looking to help.
“The mayor has a tour drive every year and (Stuff a Truck) has turned into a fun activity for kids in the neighborhoods to come after school,” she said. “They really enjoy it. They get to go and put the gifts in the car (actually a police truck). The officers will unlock the car and they will get their pictures taken with the officers.
“The kids really do enjoy it and going out to the truck makes them feel like they did something.”
The department periodically clears out the vehicle and takes donations to the mayor’s office, which receives a list of families in need during the holiday season and allows them to come in and pick out gifts that they would like to use for Christmas.
“A lot of the police officers will chip in to buy (kids) presents,” Capanna noted. “We’re doing that now. If we hear last minute that a family will not have Christmas, we’ll collect them and bring them out to the family (ourselves).”
For more information on the toy drive and how you can help families in the community, visit the Gloucester Township police Facebook and website.
