Members of the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh took over a section of Petra International Ministries in Penn Hills a week before Christmas to sort through gifts for 500 children across Allegheny County.
Mattie Woods of Penn Hills serves as developer of the Urban League’s Opportunity Broker Program. Her job is to connect folks with various programming the Urban League has to offer and to help the group form partnerships with other organizations.
“It matters that we all connect,” Woods said.
Woods was in full force Dec. 18 during the Urban League’s 31st annual toy drive.
Local companies such as Alcoa, Amazon and Toys for Tots provided the toys for this year’s drive. Alcoa has been a major supporter of the event since its founding. Each year, its employees shop for toys to give to the children, Woods said.
Urban League employees and roughly 20 volunteers spent about six hours sorting the toys by age and preparing them for distribution to families. Petra International Ministries donated the space and parking lot for the day to give the organization room to organize and load transport vans.
The Urban League operates family support centers in the East Hills, Duquesne and Northview Heights. The toys will be given to families who have used the nonprofit’s programming at the three locations.
“For those parents, during the holidays, coming up with the extra dollars for gifts for children is not easy,” Woods said.
Christopher Gary, an Urban League employee and a resident of the city’s North Side neighborhood, works with families at the Northview Heights location. He spent the day sorting through toys and delivering them to families.
“I think it really helps a lot of people I help on a regular basis,” Gary said. “A lot of people are dealing with unemployment, not being able to afford toys for their kids this year. This gives them an opportunity to get something nice for their kids.”
In his work with the Urban League, Gary said he shares a lot of his own life with the people he assists. He said being able to relate and be vulnerable with people makes them feel more comfortable when receiving help.
“It gives them an opportunity to open up and gives them a chance to tell you what they need,” Gary said.
After bags of toys were gathered for each family, Urban League workers dispersed to each of the support centers to distribute them.
Woods said it’s important for the children receiving the gifts to understand that they’re important and that people care.
“It’s very refreshing (to host the giveaway),” Woods said. “It’s a wonderful feeling because any time you have a number of groups coming together, collaborating to make something happen, to make it better for the children, it’s very refreshing. It’s a good thing.”