For 20 years, Aramark has hosted its annual Giving Tree for local families in need.
Tim Sweet, general manager of Food Services, said it gets bigger and bigger each year.
In its early years, it started out helping four families. Now, the Giving Tree is sponsoring families from For the Love Of Children, a division of Dayton Children Services, Rosa Parks Elementary School and Sinclair students in financial need.
Sweet said this year, there could be up to 700 toys for the children.
To participate, take a yellow tag from the tree, donate whatever item is on the tag, then bring back the item and place it unwrapped under the same tree.
The tag will include the family number, gender and age of the child as well as their desired item.
Items do not have to be new; they can be used but only if they are in good condition.
Sweet said he’s seen departments adopt an entire family from the tree as part of their gift exchanges.
“It’s a good way to help out,” Sweet said. “The best gift is the gift of giving. After you do it, you’ll find out why.”
He said he looks at it as a way to give back and he’s always impressed.
Sweet recalls a year that Rosa Parks Elementary School said they had a lot of children wearing the same uniform day after day. In response, Giving Tree participants donated nearly 100 shirts for their uniforms.
Another year, a department donated 50 boxes of tissues after they found out that teachers were purchasing them out of their own paychecks.
The Giving Tree will end on Dec. 11. Families will have two days afterwards to pick up donated items. Students are allowed to take as many tags as they like.