TOY DRIVE A SUCCESS

Harvey Kooner

Benevolent Brotherhood Society

Santa’s job will be a bit easier this year, as the Lower Mainland came together to honour the memory of Victor Ghirra through an inaugural toy drive. Over 1,500 toys packed the Riverside Palace in Richmond on Saturday, December 15th. All to pay tribute to the legacy of the man with a goldenheart: Victor Ghirra. “Victor is not with us today, but looking around and seeing all the generousity from people in the community; his spirit is stillwith us,” said Bobby Ghirra, General Manager of Riverside Hall and Victor’solder brother. The toys will be evenly distributed to: Children’s Hospital, Lower Mainland Salvation Army and the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau.

Victor had a big heart. He donated thousands of dollars worth of toys to Children's Hospital for over 14 years. Whenever they asked: “Who are you? Which organization are you from?” He would say: "It doesn't matter who I am, those toys are for the kids and that's all you need to know." The touching part of this story is that Victor never told anyone about it. Individuals close to him did not even know about this good deed. His funeral was very moving. He passed away at the age of 37; he left behind 4 young sons and his wife. There were close to 2,000 people at his funeral. The Ghirra Family, The Benevolent Brotherhood Society, Riverside Halls and Vancity Insurance hope that these toys bring smiles to children’s lives.

To find out more about the Benevolent Brotherhood Society and how you canhelp. If you wish to volunteer your time, energy and efforts please contactthem at: hkooner@shaw.ca or phone: 604.671.4180.