Mason police station seeks toy donations
The Mason District Police Station’s “Gary Clause” program collects toys and pajamas for children and distributes them to families that might not be able to afford holiday gifts.
Members of the community are encouraged to drop off new unwrapped toys, gift cards, and new PJs and socks to the Mason District Government Center, 5507 Columbia Pike, Annandale, by Dec. 12. There is a collection box in the lobby. Gift cards can be handed to the receptionist at the police station.
The gifts will be distributed to children and teens at the Parkwood and Olde Salem Village apartments in Culmore and Fairmont Gardens and the Vistas in Annandale.
Police officers will distribute toys on Dec. 16 and PJs on Dec. 17. 2nd Lt. Richard Buisch, who’s in charge of the program, estimates they will give out about 1,400 toys.
Police station personnel will wrap all the gifts, which Buisch estimates will take two weeks.
“Gary Clause” started in 2016, when a lieutenant brought a Santa suit to the station and asked for volunteers to wear it while on patrol. Det. Gary Moore stepped up, and he’s been playing the role of Santa ever since. She then asked him to hand out hundreds of teddy bears and candy canes to children living in a high-crime area, says Buisch.
The following year, officers with the Victims Services unit took children who had been in abusive homes holiday shopping as part of Target’s “Heroes and Helpers” grant program. They found that many of the children wanted to buy socks and pajamas for their siblings, rather than toys for themselves. As a result, officers started collecting PJs and socks for Gary Clause and his elf helpers to hand out.
Most people donate toys for younger kids, while older youths and teens need gifts, too, Buisch says. He suggests donors buy sports equipment for teens; they also appreciate gift cards for fast-food places.
Buisch reached out to Toys for Tots, which provided items for the program but also referred families in need from all over the county.
The Mason police station has already agreed to bring holiday cheer to 35 families and expects another 70 to 80 by Christmas, he says. That’s in addition to the hundreds of families in Culmore and Annandale.
