Mack, always up for informal meet-ups with local Twitter-users, was all for an informal Tweetup at the Santas Anonymous warehouse tonight, and I was more than happy to pitch in myself.
We headed to the warehouse on the west end of the city, and after filling in a quick one-page application form, were led to the bagging room. My family and I have delivered presents for Santas Anonymous before, so the mounds of presents encased in garbage bags were a familiar sight to me, but this was my first time participating at an earlier stage.
Bagging room
Tags, divided into areas of the city
We were shown the bagging process – how to identify the number and ages of the children in the household, and how to properly secure the address tag to the bag – before being set loose. With holiday music playing in the background, it wasn’t a difficult or laborious task at all. The four of us in total who had shown up managed to get through quite a few tags, but as I remarked to Mack at the end of the night – we really could have just kept going. Between the “wrapping bees” outside, and knowing that the charity is still collecting toys, it is amazing to me that they will ever be ready for delivery day. The logistical challenges of collecting, sorting, wrapping and delivering thousands of toys just boggle my mind – but bravo to the organizers for pulling it off every year.
Mack and Diane hard at work
I think my family and I will be delivering presents again this year – after seeing a bit of what goes on behind the scenes, I’m even more excited to do so. If you want to join in on spreading Christmas cheer, check out the details on the Santas Anonymous website.
Only Here for the Food 
Cool. I want to participate this year!