At first, there were looks of eager anticipation, then joy and excitement, because many children might not have gotten gifts this year if not for an event Wednesday hosted by the Victor Valley Rescue Mission with the help of the community.
The rescue mission was about 1,200 toys short this past weekend when they posted a message on the ABC7 Facebook page about the problem.
Eyewitness News reached out to the Ontario Fire Department, which had plenty of gifts left over from the Spark of Love Toy Drive, and they helped bridge the gap for the folks at the rescue mission.
"It's pretty exciting, they feel the Christmas spirit, there's some hope where maybe there wasn't before," said Ron Wilson, director of the Victor Valley Rescue Mission.
Not only did registered families get unwrapped gifts for their children Wednesday, but there were also hundreds of large bags stuffed with gifts so families could take them home and surprise their kids on Christmas.
Santa Claus might not be scheduled to make his sleigh run until this weekend, but for many families, Christmas came four days early.
"People like myself are not fortunate, don't have jobs right now, and this is a great thing that they do for us," said Sincere Gaston of Victorville. "We truly appreciate it."
