SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Nearly two months ago, the staff at B.I.G. Love Cancer Center was feeling about as empty as a storage unit the agency had rented.
Someone broke into the storage unit in October, stealing thousands of dollars worth of toys meant for children undergoing cancer treatment.
“We realized that a lot of our holiday gifts that had been collected over the year had been taken,” said Amber Woodworth, program director for the center. “I mean, we were heartbroken.”
Woodworth said that not only were the gifts meant to lift the spirits of the young patients, but they would also bring cheer to the siblings of those children and take at least one item off the parents' to-do lists.
Instead, the organization was left scrambling, wondering how to make up the loss.
“It’s a shame that we have people like that,” said Gilbert DeLeon, Commander of VFW Post 1533. “They know that the toys are there for children who need it. We got wind of it, and we decided as a post to try to help them out.”
Those who once gave their time on foreign battlefields stepped in to do good at home.
They recently held a toy drive, which exceeded everyone’s expectations.
“We had donations from other posts,” DeLeon said. “We had donations from the community. We also had cash donations.”
On Friday morning, post members gathered at their office just north of downtown for one more task: to load up a U-Haul truck with all the toys they collected and turn them over to the cancer center.
Woodworth said the amount of toys collected left her speechless.
“When people say they’d do a toy drive for us, you, kind of, go in expecting some toys. But this exceeded my expectations by so much,” Woodworth said. “It’s restored my faith in humanity.”
The heartbreak staff members once felt has begun to heal, thanks to people opening their hearts to the cancer center.
Woodworth said parents of patients served by B.I.G. Love will have a chance to pick out gifts for their children from among the donated toys.
The “shopping” event will be held closer to Christmas Day.
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