Donations running low for toy drives

With only six days till Christmas, several toy drives across Orange County are in serious need of more donations, including the Spark of Love drive, run by Orange County fire departments, officials said Monday.

The Orange County Toy Collaborative Warehouse gets toys to all the needy children served by the Spark of Love, Toys for Tots, Operation Santa Claus and St. Vincent de Paul toy drives.

They pool their resources so that the different charity efforts don’t duplicate their efforts.

This year, it has half the toys it should, said Jennifer Schulz of the Newport Beach fire department.

“Usually they shoot for 350,000 toys,” she said. “This year, they’ve only been able to fill about half that many orders.”

With little time left, the groups involved are asking for help. Schulz said that the charity efforts need new, unwrapped toys or sports equipment for all ages.

People interested in helping can donate those toys at any fire station or CVS store in Orange County. Toys for Tots drop-off locations are at all Best Buy stores, Toys-R-Us stores and Knott’s Berry Farm.

Without a huge increase in donations, fire officials said they will not be able to fill their orders, leaving thousands of needy children in Orange County communities without a toy for the holidays.