Village keeps holiday charity traditions alive

Throughout the month of December, the Village of Valley Stream has been collecting new toys to deliver to the Toys for Tots program.

After weeks of accumulating the toys, members of the Valley Stream Fire Department, Mayor Ed Fare and even Santa Claus gathered in the Valley Stream Pool lobby on Dec. 20 to load the toys unto the firetrucks.

With the toys loaded and Santa Claus ready to deliver the gifts, the trucks took off for the Nassau County Office of Emergency Management Building in Bethpage. There, the toys were hand-delivered to Major Chuck Kilbride, who heads the Toys for Tots campaign.

Recreation Director Jimmy Fitanzo and Mayor Fare also visited the second floor of Macy’s at the Green Acres mall to deliver Santa letters handwritten by village children for the Make-a-Wish foundation.

The letters were in part collected at the Waldinger Memorial Library. Children who dropped off a letter at the library’s Children’s Room were offered a holday treat.

With the toys and letters delivered, the Village of Valley Stream kept burning bright their yearly tradition of helping those charity organizations that help those in need this holiday season.