Two twin sisters, who have been putting on an annual toy event for children in need, said this year, they need help more than ever.
For the last three decades, the Long Beach women, Lynda Moran and Brenda Wilson, have been holding Children’s Christmas Store, where thousands of children can get new toys (as many as they can carry) for Christmas.
“(The event’s name) is a store because they’re allowed to shop for free. They carry that bag all around,” Lynda Moran said.
But preparing the 31st annual event has hit a couple of road blocks: tariffs and inconsistence economy, the sisters said.
“We feel that this year is worse than during the pandemic,” Moran, who also runs New image Emergency Shelter for the Homeless, said.
The 75-year-old sisters said several donors, who had provided toys for the charity event in previous years, are not participating this year due to their own financial strains.
“We had some funders that we’ve had routinely for a couple of years. This year, we lost three of our largest toy donors,” said Moran.
The sisters said they need at least 30,000 toys by next weekend to push forward with the charity event, which also provides shoes, refreshments and a visit from Santa to homeless children and those from low-income households.
“Without this Christmas Store, these are the children that would not have Christmas,” Brenda Wilson said.
The sisters, who have been running the annual Christmas event nearly half their lives, said they are facing some challenges of their own as the sisters are going through cancer together.
“”All of these children come from homeless and low-income (families,)” said Moran. “The compassion and need — that’s why I do it even if I have chemo.”
The sisters are pleading for donations, especially from large companies that can provide hundreds of toys.
Donors can visit the website or call Lynda Moran at 562 -822-7657 and Brenda Wilson at 562-972-4441.
The Children’s Christmas Store event is scheduled to take place on Saturday, Dec. 20 at the Long Beach Hilton on Ocean Boulevard.
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