With Christmas music playing in every coffee shop and stores chaotic with holiday cheer, it is clear that the gift-giving season is upon us. Even if your household doesn’t celebrate a gift giving holiday this time of year, it’s always important to give back to your community. Unfortunately, not everyone can afford to give their children presents during the holidays. Toy drives are a great way to volunteer to help kids receive the magic of Santa or just presents in general this holiday this season. Charlottesville has a great variety of toy stores that participate in these charity events to help our community, and spread the holiday cheer. 

 Charlottesville has a number of local toy stores that have everything you need. With companies like Amazon dominating the online gift industry, the holiday season is the perfect time to support local businesses. A great option is Alakazam, which is located on the Downtown Mall. They offer a wide selection of toys meant for all ages. Over at Stonefield there is a cute toy store, Whimsies, which doubles as a children’s clothing store. Also make sure to visit Shenanigans, a toy store that is located on Main Street. The owner is a former Charlottesville City School teacher and it has won “Best of C-ville” for the last 3 years in a row. A former Charlottesville High School student works there and she describes her experience as, “a warm and welcoming environment.” She then goes on to mention that she has “spent multiple paychecks just on toys from Shenanigans for friends during Christmas time.” Shenanigans is even a drop-off location for a toy drive. 

Unfortunately not everyone has the luxury of buying gifts for loved ones. 1 out of 10 households in America go gift-free. A popular toy donation company is Toys for Tots. Each year they collect a national estimate 16.8 million toys and books for children in need. Mason’s Toy Box and Toy Lift are also great choices for donations. The Circle of Love Foundation is coming to Virginia this year. Since 2004, they have raised over $825,000 in gifts and other supplies. Regardless of which company you donate to, some of the drop off locations include: Shenandoah Joes on Preston Ave., Skyline Cleaners, Shenanigans, Moose’s by the Creek, Fashion Square Mall, and many more that can be found on “I Love Cville’s” website. In order for your gifts to be taken at the donation site, they have to be new and unwrapped. Most companies will tell you what types of toys are needed the most. So this holiday season, think about donating to spread the holiday cheer and give back to your community.