ALLENTOWN. Pa. — As the students chanted and screamed their names, it was a toss-up as to who was the most famous mascot at Roosevelt Elementary School on Friday.
Hundreds of students chanted "Santa" as they stood in the hallways waiting for St. Nick, er, Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk.
Tuerk — dressed as Kris Kringle — was joined by a playful FeRROUS, alongside the Grinch and musician Teddy Oso at the Lehigh Valley Labor Council Annual Toy Parade.
The event is now in its fourth year and includes a toy giveaway for parents and families of Roosevelt students and a procession through the school hallways.
Santa also paid a special visit to select classrooms of teachers and students from the autistic support classes (each child from the class received a wrapped gift that they pre-selected and was delivered by the mayor).
Screaming young fans
During the holiday fun, each of the mascots, and Santa, were greeted by screaming young fans — 646 to be exact — as they walked down the halls.
A gleeful FeRROUS shook his hips and danced as he held out his furry gray arms to cuddle the small, joyful children.
Lurking in the background was a cranky Grinch, who scowled as he placed his green, hairy arms on his hips in disapproval.
The Grinch's scowl didn't last, as the students' smiles seemed contagious (the green beast even handed out a hug or two).
A parade of happiness
The parade of happiness began when rows of firetrucks and Allentown Police Department vehicles put on their sirens to announce Santa's arrival.
Driving behind was a group of trucks filled with toys which were later distributed to the school's parents and families.
Organization of the toy drive began in October and involved scouting for volunteers, collecting donations and rallying assistance from the Allentown police and fire departments, according to John Werkheiser, labor liaison for United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley.
The event is a partnership between Capital BlueCross, the Lehigh Valley Labor Council and TeenWorks of the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley.
"I recently brought in [volunteers] from Davinci Center and I was trying not to cry because I was so happy to see our students that don't speak English and then jump up [in class] and say it in Spanish, and all of a sudden they are participating in class and talking. It's a wonderful feeling to see them happy."Yasainee Burton
Households of Roosevelt Elementary School, one of 14 elementary schools in the Allentown School District, have a median income of $43,100.
Yasainee Burton, Roosevelt's community school coordinator, said the annual event provides a Christmas to families who may not be able to provide gifts to their children.
This year was Burton's first time helping with planning the labor council's parade and toy drive, which reminded her of another event at the school where a majority of its students are Spanish speakers.
"I recently brought in [volunteers] from Da Vinci (Science) Center and I was trying not to cry because I was so happy to see our students that don't speak English and then jump up [in class] and say it in Spanish, and all of a sudden they are participating in class and talking," she said. "It's a wonderful feeling to see them happy."
"We know the per capita of the family here is not [high], so being able to help out and knowing we're making a difference is big with us at the Labor Council, it's a wonderful feeling to be able to give back."
The toy giveaway was held in the school gym where unwrapped gifts for infants to those up to age 18 were spread out on tables.
Spotted among the presents were soccer and footballs, board games, Barbie dolls, action figures, plush animals and shoes.
Each of the families was allowed to pick two toys per household — regardless if the child was a student of Roosevelt.
Werkheiser said folks from the labor council and TeenWorks volunteer within the school year-round with tasks such as painting and cleaning.
But he said the December toy drive remains his favorite.
"We know the per capita of the family here is not [high], so being able to help out and knowing we're making a difference is big with us at the labor council," Werkheiser said. "It's a wonderful feeling to be able to give back."
