Solano County toy drive coming up short

VALLEJO, Calif. - A Solano County toy drive is coming up short this year, with this Saturday's distribution day looming.

"I want people to have a nice dinner at the table for Christmas and the kids to have a gift, the kids are our future," said Mario Saucedo, CEO of the Solano Aids Coalition. "There are a lot of people in distress."

Tuesday evening, Saucedo was checking collection barrels in the community.

There are four in Vallejo, including one at the Better Health Group Marijuana Dispensary

"We're definitely pushing and letting everybody know but this year has been a rough year," said the manager, surveying the half-full barrel. "But we're going to make it happen, the community will help."

Saucedo thanked him, knowing that a last-minute push for toys often brings results.

Tuesday, two women arrived at the give-away site on Georgia Street and said they had toys to donate.

"I said you can put them right in the bin and she said 'they're not going to fit!'" said Tonya Moore, of the Immersive Learning Center, which hosts the event.

The women unloaded a car full of toys, stacking dozens of playthings in the lobby.

They had been sent by their employer, Dr. John Geisse of Solano Dermatology.

"He gave them a thousand bucks and told those two to go shopping, and they went shopping to come in with all these toys,"  Moore said. "Everything you see here came at one time, we had nothing!"

Saucedo blames higher toy prices and unease about the pandemic and jobs for the downturn in donations.

He has never sent a child away empty-handed, but always worries.

"Every year it grows and grows and last year it was around 1400 kids and 400 families," he explained.

Lillianna Brown,10, was among the children who came away smiling last year.

"It's a big deal because sometimes you want new toys," said the 4th grade Brown, "and it''s fun because the the 9- to 12-year-olds have their own toys for that age, and other ages have their own toys."

Saucedo started the toy drive 18 years ago, with just 30 kids, who were infected or affected by HIV.

He had become an AIDS support volunteer while working in Hollywood costume design.

"It was a terrible time, people were dying left and right, and in a couple of years I had no friends, nobody but me."

Now he is a fixture in Vallejo- his coalition is known for year-round food and condom distribution- and the annual holiday toy drive. of course the toy drive offered to any child in need.

Saucedo knows compassion is everywhere; another of his collection barrels is inside the Town House Bar.

"Together we can do it, we have to do it," the owner enthused Tuesday, despite the approaching deadline.

Saucedo is convinced toys are more than mere playthings, but an expression of kindness that leaves a lasting impression.

"If we as a community help, one toy, one little toy can make a big difference in a kid."

For information on assisting the toy drive, click here.