The Peoria Diamond Club will be hosting its 25th Annual Volunteer Holiday Toy Drive on Dec. 3, at the Peoria Sports Complex.

After embarking on a successful partnership with Peoria Unified School District in 2014, the PDC again aims to bring holiday cheer to local families in need. Out of 33 elementary schools in the Peoria Unified School District, 22 are classified as Title 1 schools, of whom at least 40% of students are on free or reduced lunches.

After the last three challenging years, the need is greater than ever for all kinds of assistance. The Peoria Diamond Club’s volunteers, known as Red Shirts, are major contributors in toy donations, and supplemental gifts are purchased using cash donations and organizational discounts at local stores.

Diamond Club employees work with school district nurses and teachers to identify families that can benefit from this program, and because of this collaborative effort, toys will be in families’ homes before the winter break begins.

“It is gratifying to know that not only does our volunteer labor force contribute so much to the ongoing effort to provide better services and programs to the youth of our West Valley, but our toy drive contributes to allowing the children of Peoria some magic to their holiday,” said Roz Shanley, general manager of the Peoria Diamond Club. “We start collecting our gifts at the Thanksgiving Day race each year, that our partners, the AZ Road Racers, hold at the Peoria Sports Complex, but this year will be taking drop off donations of unwrapped toys at the PSC lobby up until the drive on Dec 3. We encourage everyone to participate in both the toy drive and the running races, and in doing so, help us brighten the world of a child. We are happy to do our part and highly encourage others to open their hearts and find ways to give back to our community as well, however that may be.”

Those interested in contributing to the Peoria Diamond Club’s 25th Annual Toy Drive or participating in the Thanksgiving Day Run, can either email info@peoriadiamondclub.org, or call 623-773-8710.