As money becomes more scarce throughout the Bay Area donors are pulling back from holiday philanthropic gift-giving.
Toy drive organizers in San Francisco and throughout the Bay Area say this is the worst year for donations since the drives began decades ago.
The San Francisco Firefighters Toy Program has received only 40 percent of the amount of donations as last year, and the Oakland Mayor’s Community Toy Drive is at half of last year’s donations, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The firefighters’ program began 60 years ago, and Mayor Ron Dellums says Oakland’s program has been going for 30 years.
The decrease is even more painful since there is an increase in families in need — almost 20 percent more in San Francisco. The chair of the firefighters’ program told the Chronicle that many former donors are now in waiting in lines to get help themselves.
The Oakland toy drive has looked past its immediate community too, reaching out to neighboring Contra Costa County, as well as to churches and businesses for assistance in meeting the needs of those who are without.
