With the goal of providing toys for children who otherwise wouldn’t receive any, the San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department (SMC Fire) organizes an annual holiday toy drive to give back to the community.
The San Mateo Consolidated Fire Department Toy Program, originally known as The Toys for Christmas Program, began in 1973 after SMC Fire learned about San Francisco’s holiday toy drive. With the help of Fire Captain John Warren, also known as Captain Christmas, and Fire Captain Dan Owen, the department set the program in motion.
“We like helping people out, and Christmas is always a great time of the year. Being able to bring the toy drive program from San Francisco to our community and being able to deliver presents and good deeds to those in our community was the reason for our toy drive,” said Fire Captain Gino Lavezzo of SMC Fire.
The goal of giving back to San Mateo, Foster City, and Belmont communities has always been the main inspiration behind the toy drive since Warren and Owen created it in the ’70s.
The program has always been popular among the public, and since then, it has grown significantly, gaining more participants every year. According to Lavezzo, the program has flourished in the last decade, averaging 8,000 to 10,000 toys each year.
“The toy drive has always been very popular, and due to social media and trying to spread the word that even though we live in a very nice area, there are still people that aren’t as fortunate as us has really kind of caused it to take off,” Lavezzo said.
Although social media has been a significant cause for immense growth in recent years, another contributing factor is partnering with local organizations and schools to help collect and distribute toys.
“Samaritan House is the biggest charity we work with, but there are also various groups throughout the city, including some schools. There’s an organization in San Carlos called One Life that gets a lot of toys and an elementary school that got a bunch as well,” Lavezzo said.
While these organizations receive the bulk of the donated toys, they are not the only donation sites for SMC Fire. There are also nine fire stations and a donation booth at the Hillsdale Shopping Center that collect donations.
Staffed by firefighters from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m., the donation booth is an excellent way for the department to interact with the community.
“It’s a great thing working the donation booth at the mall, talking to people who come by, and accepting the gifts. Also, seeing the young kids get excited about being generous for the holidays is great,” said Brendan Murphy, a firefighter at Fire Station 15.
Murphy is not alone, as witnessing generosity in young children and the joy the toy drive brings to many is one of its most rewarding parts for many firefighters.
“Seeing kids bring in gifts with smiles to the fire department and seeing the joy that giving to people gives to others is one of the most rewarding parts of the program,” said Jake Mattman, a firefighter at Fire Station 15.
Firefighters are not alone, as the feelings of joy and generosity are also apparent in the community after participating in the toy drive.
“I participated in the toy drive because I just really wanted to give back to the community because the community has helped me through a lot, and, afterward, I felt so much joy knowing that I did something good,” said Katherine O’Connor, a participant in the toy drive.
The SMC Fire Toy Program is a time for the community to help those in need, but it is also a time for the fire department to help the community in ways other than being first responders.
“The toy drive is a great tradition, and everyone in the department loves it because it is an opportunity to give back to the community in ways beyond just responding to emergencies,” Murphy said.
