Camp Hayden Donates Gifts to Families in Need this Holiday Season

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) – Volunteers at Camp Hayden hosted their annual Grinch and Santa event tonight to provide gifts for children and families in need in the community. This was the seventh year Camp Hayden hosted their event with a Christmas gift truck at the Friendship Garden in downtown Idaho Falls.

Camp Hayden is a volunteer-run organization whose mission is to provide unforgettable experiences for children with special needs. This holiday season, they extended their offer of help for the holidays to all families responding to their call for assistance. They were able to raise thousands of dollars in donations as well as recieved hundreds of toys from Toys for Tots.

The plan this year was to surprise 15 families, but because of the overwhelming requests and generosity of donors, they were able to help 30 families.

Children lined up outside the truck, eagerly awaiting their turn to meet Santa. The Grinch himself is a volunteer with Camp Hayden, and told us none of this would be possible without the donors.

"A big part of this is Toys for Tots, we couldn't do this without them. They gave us enough toys we were able to get them into bags for 30 different families," he said. "Then, Camp Hayden donors brought money out so we were able to bless these families and help them give a Christmas to their kids."