Pitt police, Salvation Army bring children Christmas presents

Pitt police will make this holiday season a little brighter for 50 Pittsburgh area children…. Pitt police will make this holiday season a little brighter for 50 Pittsburgh area children.

Three years ago, Community Relations/Crime Prevention Officer Deborah Walker began a partnership with Treasures for Children, a Salvation Army holiday gift donation program.

Each November, the department receives about fifty tags from the Salvation Army, which include the gender and age of a 4- to 13-year-old child. Pitt police officers and staff then take the tags from a Christmas tree and purchase a gift, or sometimes two or three, corresponding to the tag.

“It’s a department-wide effort,” Walker said.

Each volunteer is asked to spend between $15 and $20, according to Walker, but she said many spend more.

“I know our officers go above and beyond … to make sure an underprivileged youth has a good Christmas,” Walker said.

Officer Walker, records manager Carin Austin and personnel administrator Keyona Hayes loaded a van with dolls, toy police cars and action figures Friday. They took the donated items to the Salvation Army warehouse, a room Walker likens to Santa’s workshop.

Seasoned volunteers then unloaded the toys efficiently, separating them into groups among the hundreds of other toys that reach “from floor to ceiling,” making room for the next truckload.

Though only in its third year, Pitt police’s affiliation with Treasures for Children has grown in the department each year, Walker said.

“No kid will not have a present,” Pitt police Chief Tim Delaney said, citing the overwhelming response from his department.

“Next year we’re looking to increase our participation,” Walker said, adding that even those passing through the station notice the tree and request a tag, wanting to give back. However, so far the department only receives a certain number of tags.

“These are people who need Christmas. They need happiness,” Delaney said.