Donate online to the Spark of Love Toy Drive right now
Southlanders helped ABC7's resident elf Garth Kemp Stuff-A-Bus full of toys at Los Cerritos Center on Friday, bringing new, unwrapped toys or sports equipment for children. Their efforts helped fill a record eight buses. Last year, our second year at the Cerritos location, five buses were stuffed.
Get information and directions to Stuff-A-Bus in Cerritos
The Friday event, held from 4:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., was our second Stuff-A-Bus drive of 2012. Last week, generous donors helped stuff a total of 7 1/4 buses in Ontario.
Area residents woke up bright and early and brought loads of toys and sports equipment for the cause. The event is drawing residents of all ages from across the Southland.
The ABC Unified School District brought toys and checks to the event, and Xerox donated a check for $3,600 to help buy toys. Pioneer Medical Group took a unique route, donating items for teens in need like hair dryers and curlers for older girls and sporting equipment for older boys. Razor scooter representatives also helped Garth the Elf Stuff-A-Bus.
Eyewitness News anchor Leslie Sykes got a shout out from her alma mater, Saint Joseph High School. Uniform-clad students came out early before class to donate toys they collected from fellow students.
The Jesters weren't the only students to help Garth the Elf in Cerritos. Cheerleaders from Artesia High School and Burbank Elementary also brought toys to help the cause.
Watch all Stuff-A-Bus video clips
You can also text "ABC7" to 80100 to donate $10 to the Spark of Love Toy Drive. The donation will appear on your mobile phone bill.
For 20 years, ABC7 and firefighters from Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and Ventura counties, along with the Los Angeles City Fire Department, have joined forces to run the Spark of Love Toy Drive. This campaign collects new, unwrapped toys and sports equipment for the under served children in our communities.
Toys collected in the respective counties are distributed locally. Last year alone, Spark of Love collected over 500,000 toys within all five counties and we want to top that total this year, so please help the firefighter's ignite a spark of love in a child's heart.
