A group, “The Winter Wonderland Event Team,” worked for roughly nine months to make two magical nights happen this week.
This past Wednesday and Thursday evenings, Truth and Warring elementary schools, respectively, held their annual Winter Wonderland parties, featuring food, music, activities and thousands of dollars in toy and gift card giveaways.
“We wanted our families to have one night where they could be free from everything,” Truth teacher Cheryl Haines said Wednesday evening. “They were dancing on the dance floor, they saw the performances. They had ice cream; we ran out of ice cream for the first time ever. Everybody left happy. And, that was our goal. So, we accomplished our mission.”
Both nights were the product not only of the tireless efforts of school staff – though, Haines said, the Winter Wonderland team members would prefer not to be named, including herself – but of the support shown by community organizations and businesses donating food, funding, toys, gift cards and services.
The donations made it so, Haines said, 99% of the Truth Winter Wonderland was completely free to families including, for the first time, a free dinner. Parents each left with a voucher for a free entrée at Texas Roadhouse, and students left with books that included a coupon for a kids’ meal, and a voucher for skating passes at McCann Ice Arena. The Warring event was likewise largely free, including free ice cream and giveaways.
Between the two schools, roughly 1,000 toys were available for students to take home. Students in attendance were given a ticket they could either turn in for a free toy – ranging from dolls and Mr. Potato Heads, to science kits and Play Doh, to board games and blocks – or enter into a raffle for a “big ticket” item or a stuffed animal that includes $100 in gift cards. The bigger items varied by the school’s age range, but totaled eight bikes, five Barbie Dreamhouses and one Barbie car, nine drones, three telescopes, six scooters and two “Motor Masters,” a toy that teaches kids how to fix automobile engines. And, there were about 40 of the gift card stuffed animals.
“Our gift theme has always been careers,” Haines said. “It’s not just that we’re giving them a gift. We’re giving them science kits, we’re giving them board games, we’re giving them Barbie Dreamhouses, where your imagination can be sparked. A lot of our children don’t have that opportunity to just play.”
Parents could also pay to enter a separate raffle for an even more generous “bonanza basket.” The raffles ended each night with the feel of a game show somehow hosted within the schools’ walls. But before those names were called to “come on down” and claim prizes, students at Truth were able to make cookies and take photos with Santa Claus, and students at Warring could have their face painted and win a cake in a cake walk. Both nights featured masked singer and dancer competitions and plenty of music, dancing and smiles.
Warring Principal Nicole Penn took the mic at one point to remind families of how the night was made possible.
“I need you all to understand, none of this happens without your local community,” she said. “Please make sure to continue supporting them because they support us.”
Haines called the event “a wonderful outpouring from our community to support our families. … Every child deserves to be happy one day.”