Hundreds of children for whom a Sinterklaas party without gifts was threatened due to financial distress within the family have been helped by a fundraising campaign by the Social Shop in Assen. In recent weeks, countless toy items have been handed in.
“We are impressed,” says Elisabeth of the Social Shop in the building on Brunelstraat, which was filled with toys. “It is very nice to see how generous people are and how many new gifts we have received for all children.”
Because there are already enough second-hand toys in circulation, the emphasis in this promotion was mainly on new items. This condition did not stand in the way of the success of the action. “There are a lot of people who just give it to us,” concludes colleague Elise.
It led to a stream of hundreds of gifts that found their way to the Social Shop. The objective of giving 400 children from less fortunate families a Sinterklaas evening was thus amply achieved. For example, there are several gifts to distribute per child, who each filled in a wish list. “The parents then come to collect the things, some of them come to have a look first. Everything is downstairs in cupboards. The toys that remain are a good destination for them,” Elisabeth says.
Whether the collection will be set up again next year is still unclear. This year is the nineteenth time. “We’re definitely going to look at it because it’s never been as big as this year.”