Niсos Navideсos (A Christmas Toy Event).

[SHANEA]

http://www.swtexaslive.com/node/2562

The hurt lingers. He does his best to pretend his heart doesn’t ache, but his tears give him away. You’d think he’d be used to rejection—his classmates at school make fun of the way he dresses: hand-me-down clothes and scruffy, too-big-for-his-feet shoes.

Though he’d rather be by himself, at school especially, he doesn’t have a choice. He has to be around other children who don’t particularly like him because he’s so “different”. During this time of the year, there’s non-stop talk about Christmas and the gifts the other children expect to receive. Silently, he wishes his family could afford a Christmas tree and gifts to go with it.

He and other children who are not expecting any gifts during the holiday season will be in for a surprise this year, thanks to volunteer organizations such as Niсos Navideсos (A Christmas Toy Event).



Miri Sotelo with gifts donated for this year's first-ever city-wide toy drive.(LIVE! Photo/Diana Gonzales)Founded this summer, Niсos Navideсos will distribute new toys to 1,219 underprivileged youngsters at a Christmas Party Friday, Dec. 22 in the Del Rio Civic Center. The children either were referred by area social service agencies or signed up for gifts during four registration drives that took place throughout the city in October. Also at the Dec. 22 Christmas Party, 14 bikes and 10 safety helmet will be raffled. Claudio Sotelo Jr., Debbie Sotelo, Diana Sotelo, Alma Rabago, and Claudia Rabago donated the bikes. State Rep. Pete Gallego donated the safety helmets.

New toys were collected throughout the summer and fall. In addition, the first-ever citywide toy drive is planned this Friday, Dec. 15 from 12 noon to 12 midnight in the civic center for children ages 12 months to 12 years.

Entertainment will be provided during the 12-hour event. Admission is a new, unwrapped toy. Entertainers will include Rene (Reno) Luna, who will be the disc jockey; Del Rio High School Band Director Juan Naсez and Eskandalo Show Band, Tejano Heat, Tony Faz, Adrian y Destino, Henry Balderamma and Esther, and Lupe Garcia y Amigos.

Refreshments will be sold at the event. Proceeds will benefit Niсos Navideсos.

In addition, State Rep. Gallego and dignitaries from Del Rio and Laughlin Air Force Base will host a kick-off fundraiser program at 7 p.m. in the civic center.

The Office of State Rep. Gallego and the City of Del Rio are sponsoring the toy drive and Christmas Party, explains Miri Sotelo, who is the Del Rio liaison for State Rep. Gallego, whose office is in the civic center. Gallego, 43, elected in 1990, represents District 74, which includes Brewster, Culberson, Edwards, Hudspeth, Jeff Davis, Loving, Pecos, Presidio, Reeves, Terrell, Uvalde, Val Verde, and Ward counties.

Sotelo is the lead organizer of Niсos Navideсos.

She and a group of individuals representing Del Rio and Laughlin Air Force Base, area schools, social service agencies, businesses and organizations met for the first time on June 12, 2006 in the civic center to plan a city-wide toy drive to benefit area children who would not otherwise receive any Christmas gifts.

The committee chose the name, Niсos Navideсos, A Christmas Toy Event and agreed to set a goal of collecting between 700 and 1,000 toys during the Christmas season for underprivileged children from all sections of the community and Laughlin Air Force Base.

In previous years, Christmas toy drives such as the Texas A&M Colonias’ Shoebox Project and Project Niсo, provided Christmas toys for underprivileged youngsters in certain sections of town, explains Sotelo. Children in the colonias (unincorporated areas along the Texas-Mexico border that do not have electricity, running water, air conditioning, or paved roads) benefited from the Christmas Shoebox Project—toys placed in a shoebox and gift-wrapped. For many years, Project Niсo organizers distributed toys to youngsters on Christmas Day at Brown Plaza in the San Felipe neighborhood (barrio).

“What started this toy event was when I did the Texas A&M Colonias Christmas Shoebox Project. That project benefited 300 children and that was for only one section of our town. I had been thinking and thinking over the years that more children should be included. Then I found out that Ruben (Pollo) Barragan was no longer doing Project Niсo, which only covered the San Felipe neighborhood. Then I thought, ‘Well, why not? Let’s try and do it—a community-wide effort. We started June 12 with very few people —a handful—and we came up with a name for the project, with the committee’s help. We work as a team. We don’t do anything unless the committee approves,” she says.

“My main reason for wanting to do this for the community is that I made a promise to God that I would do something for Him if my grandson would come back from Iraq safe and sound.” Her voice breaks; the tears flow; her eyes close for a few seconds. She sighs. “He’s back and he’s fine, thanks be to God,” she says, as she opens her eyes and then smiles. “That was my main reason for wanting to do something. To thank the Lord for keeping my grandson safe and for all the many blessings God has given our family.”

Though she continues to have tremendous support from numerous members of the community and Laughlin AFB, some people have criticized her for initiating the toy drive. The critics contend that by doing so, she is “depriving” children in certain parts of town from receiving toys. That criticism defies logic, she says. “I don’t want to take anything away from anybody like some people have accused me of doing. The toy drive is intended to help children from all areas of the city and Laughlin Air Force Base. There are many children in the area that would not otherwise have a Christmas if it weren’t for Niсos Navideсos and other organizations as well. There’s enough love and kindness to go around.”

To make sure there was no duplication of effort, the Niсos Navideсos committee enlisted the assistance of social service agencies. Representatives of those entities presented the panel with a list of names and ages of children served by those agencies. Said list was compared with names and ages of children who registered during four registration drives conducted during the month of October at various locations throughout the city. The registration drives took place at Plaza del Sol Mall, Brown Plaza in the San Felipe neighborhood and the John Rowland Center on West Martin Street.

Persons interested in helping out with the Dec. 15 and Dec. 22 events in the civic center are encouraged to contact Sotelo at 775-0800.

Children who will be receiving toys from Niсos Navideсos come from families served by:

Hill Country Mental Health and Mental Retardation
Avance
Del Rio Housing Authority
Amistad Family Violence and Rape Crisis Center
Val Verde Child Welfare Board
WIC Cooperative
Texas Department of Family/Protective Services
Val Verde Child Welfare Board
Val Verde Children’s Shelter
Pathways
Niсos Navideсos volunteers and the organizations they represent:

Office of State Rep. Pete Gallego
Miri Sotelo, lead organizer
Amistad Family Violence and Rape Crisis Center
Annette Flores
Avance
Teresa Faz
Border Federal Credit Union:
Cecilia de la Cruz
Alida Helgerman
Elda Morin
Gaby Richarte
Maria Richarte, (Gaby’s mother)
City of Del Rio
Stephen (Red) Fernandez
Leno Hernandez
Councilman Claudio Sotelo
Bibi Valdez and Mayor Efrain Valdez
Del Rio Housing Authority
Greg Arrambide
Eagle Academy of Del Rio
Lupe Sotelo
East Side Elementary School
Southwest Texas LIVE!
Diana Gonzales
International Good Neighbor Council, American Legion
Luis Valdez
Laughlin Air Force Base
Griselda Gaytan
Samantha Peсa
Dolores Salazar
Claudio Sotelo
Del-Jen
Max-E-Mart/Bedell Avenue
Debbie Martinez
Plaza del Sol Mall
Laura Martinez,
Maria Martinez
Quad Counties Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse
Albert Menchaca
Simon Sotelo
Rotaract Club, Southwest Texas Junior College
Sandra Colombo, sponsor
Rotaract Club, Rotary Club of Del Rio
Amanda Mossman
San Felipe Del Rio CISD
Gloria Paredes
Southwest Texas Junior College
Amanda Castro
U.S. Border Patrol
Miguel Gaytan
Val Verde Regional Medical Center
Rose Marie Coronado Castro
Donations made to Niсos Navideсos include those from:

Adult Probation Department
Laura Allen
Border Federal Credit Union
BudCo, - Bill Heilner
City of Del Rio
Clay Cowan
Coca-Cola Bottling Co.
Del Jen
Del Rio Board of Realtors
Del Rio Chamber of Commerce
Del Rio City Council
Del Rio Housing Authority
Del Rio News-Herald
Del Rio Police Officers Association
Eagle Academy
East Side Elementary School Student Council
H-E-B Food Stores
KDLK-Radio
KTDR Radio
KTJK Radio с Jay Gonzalez
TVAW-TV, Channel 75
KWMC Radio
Labor Ready
Laughlin Air Force Base
Claudia Lopez, Innermind Connection
Max-E-Mart
Pepsi Cola/Dr Pepper/7Up Bottling Co.
Plaza del Sol Mall Leasing and Management Office
Plaza del Sol Mall Merchants
Quad Counties Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse
Martha Rodriguez
Rotaract Club - Southwest Texas Junior College
Rotary Club of Del Rio
San Felipe Del Rio CISD
San Felipe Exes Association
San Felipe Lions
Alma Rabago
Claudia Rabago
San Joseн Resident Council
Claudio Sotelo Sr.
Claudio Sotelo Jr.
Debbie Sotelo
Diana Sotelo
Lupe Sotelo
Southwest Texas LIVE!
Texas A&M Colonias Project
State Rep. Pete Gallego
Val Verde Child Welfare Board
Val Verde County Sheriff and deputies
Val Verde Regional Medical Center
Wal Mart