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EMS Elves help to stuff some stockings

Cram an Ambulance

The Cram an Ambulance campaign by WPD Ambulance to provide toys for the less fortunate this holiday season has wrapped for another year.

Toys were collected from various locations across the city, with the WPD volunteers able to completely fill a full ambulance at the Walmart location Dec 17.

The ambulance then drove from Walmart down to the headquarters of the Empty Stocking Fund on 101st Street.

There, the WPD employees, known as the EMS Elves, along with Empty Stocking Fund Executive Director Bill Hall, unloaded the hundreds of toys from the ambulance into the building. 

The EMS Elves got some help on the night. One passerby on the street noticed what was going on and offered to assist. He joined the EMS Elves in hauling the various dolls, teddy bears, toy cars and various other items from the ambulance into the building.

The next step was for the toys to be included in the Christmas hampers. Normally it takes a couple of days to sort and match the toys, which filled an entire room at the Food Bank, to kids on the hamper list.

According to numbers provided by Hall, 346 families have registered with the Empty Stocking Fund for Christmas hampers, and included in those numbers are 619 children and 575 adults.

A good portion of the toys are needed for the age group seven to 11. Hall said they might need to buy some additional toys to fill the need for certain age groups, something they account for every year.

The Christmas hampers with the food items going out to families had already been boxed up and ready to go, with the 348 hampers going out Sunday. Any extra hampers left over will go to those who weren’t able to apply in time for whatever reason.

“We try and make allowances for people and help them as much as we can.”   

As usual, Hall was impressed with the effort to Cram an Ambulance.

“ I think it was very successful again this year,” said Hall.

“The outpouring of support the last couple of days have really come forward, and we couldn’t do what we do without WPD Ambulance and all the businesses and all the individuals who take the time out to go buy some toys and provide them for us. We would just be at a loss to try and find over 600 toys for kids ourselves.”