Over 1,000 line up in Ontario to receive toys from Spark of Love Toy Drive

ONTARIO, Calif. (KABC) -- Toy giveaways for the Spark of Love toy drive began Saturday morning in Ontario, with tens of thousands of toys in bins as more than 1,000 parents waited in line.

"It's very exciting. We have all of our children out here actually helping us with the Spark of Love Toy Drive. It's a great day. We have some schools out here helping with us. There's all kinds of families that are in need that we're helping out," Ontario Fire Department Capt. John Sitar said.

Many waited overnight, lining up at 10 p.m. Friday night for a chance to receive a toy. However, children were not allowed to receive toys on site.

"We do it just a little bit differently here in Ontario. So, we don't allow any of the children to come and get the toys because we want the toys to come from Santa, their mom and dad, their aunt or uncle - whoever they live with," Sitar said. "It's more important for the toys to come from them than it is from us."

When asked why the toy drive was important Sitar shared it was the opportunity to spread holiday cheer.

"It's about the Christmas spirit. There's a lot of bad things that have gone around locally, and so today it's just our chance to give back to the community," he said. "To see a smile not only on a child's face, our children who are helping, but also on the adults that are here today."

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