Sara Escobar

Evening Star

The holiday season is right around the corner, and many citizens will soon begin their Christmas shopping. With many people struggling through financial times, Santa’s Workshop at Fort Hood plans year-round to raise funds for toys so that military families can focus on coming together.

Courtesy Photo
Santa’s Workshop at Fort Hood hosted a Garrison Golf Scramble in September to continue to raise funds for children in need at Christmas. The workshop will hold its first annual Pig N’ Pint fundraiser on October 21.

This Saturday, October 21, Santa’s Workshop will host its first ever “Pig N’ Pint Fundraiser” at the Farris Wheel in Killeen. The evening will include catering from Big Hoss BBQ, Jack Hilliard Beverages, both live and silent auctions, music, and more. The event will take place from 5:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. at 13682 Maxdale Road in Killeen—there will also be a shuttle bus leaving Club Hood at 4:45 p.m., and there is a cash-only fee of $5 to ride. Tickets for the event are $20 per person, and all funds raised at the Pig N’ Pint will go towards buying new toys, games, and books for over 3,000 military children on Fort Hood.

Santa’s Workshop was originated exclusively for charitable purposes as a unit-level, or 13th COSCOM, initiative. Out of necessity, it grew into an installation-level project in 1998. Their mission is to make new toys accessible for needy children of the Fort Hood military community during the holiday season. Because soldiers often feel a unique sense of stress when it comes to financial needs, Santa’s Workshop wants to protect military children from this sort of stress. After all the toys are purchased and inventoried, Santa’s Workshop staff take parents “elfing” for gifts for their children. Each child receives two gifts and a book, and each family also gets a board game.

The success of Santa’s Workshop is a direct result of the generous support received from the military community and from the many individuals, private organizations and businesses in and around Central Texas. With their help, a typical annual inventory consists of more than 6,400 toys, 3,200 books and 3,200 games. The approximate monetary value of gifts distributed for each child is $30, but the non-monetary value is immeasurable.

Both monetary donations, as well as newly purchased toys, can be donated to Fort Hood Santa’s Workshop, located on post, next to the Clear Creek Commissary. These donations are accepted all throughout the year. For more information, or to purchase tickets, visit www.forthoodsantasworkshop.com