12/17/2025
🧡 What a day for our community. 🏀✨
Last Tuesday, December 9, families and volunteers braved the cold to come together for a day filled with joy, connection, and community. Because of an incredible group of partners, volunteers, and supporters, we were able to provide gifts for several hundred children in our community—creating moments that will be remembered long after the day ended.
A huge thank you to the Indiana Pacers for making this event possible and for continuing to invest in communities like ours. We were thrilled to welcome the Pacemates, Boomer, and Freddy Fever, who brought energy, excitement, and big smiles to our kids. We also want to thank Hylton’s Crazy Bargains for their generous toy donations, and PetSmart for donating a ton of adorable stuffed animals that quickly became crowd favorites.
This event would not have happened without strong community partnerships. We are incredibly thankful to the Family Resource Center, led by Loryn Craig, for their partnership in putting this event together. We also extend sincere thanks to Deputy Prosecutor Maricel Driscoll and Sharan Abdullah (Girl Scouts) for their unwavering partnership and continued support—your commitment to families and community truly shows.
We’re grateful to Muncie Community Schools and Inspire Academy, including their family navigators, teachers, and administrators, for helping identify families and ensuring this event reached those who needed it most.
Thank you to Muncie Central High School for hosting us, and to Justin Oliver, Assistant Principal, for his help and support with the venue. We also appreciate the Ball State University athletes, members of Kappa Delta sorority and DCS volunteers who gave their time and energy—your presence made a meaningful difference.
Behind the scenes, we want to recognize MPD Officer Gavin Greene and MPD Domestic Violence Coordinator Kameron Petro-Shaw for their hard work and dedication in helping everything run smoothly. We also thank the Muncie Sanitation District for allowing us to borrow a box truck to transport toys—logistics like that matter more than people realize.
Finally, thank you to Chief Sloan, Deputy Chief Melissa Criswell, and Deputy Chief Deegan, as well as the City of Muncie and Mayor Ridenour, for their continued leadership and support of community-centered work.
This was truly a team effort—and a powerful reminder that even on the coldest days, our community shows up. 🧡❄️