Boston Bruins buy toys to give to children spending the holidays in the hospital
WATERTOWN - Players from the Boston Bruins took a break from the ice Friday and hit the aisles of Target at the Watertown Mall, where they filled shopping carts with toys for children in local hospitals.
"Bring a little bit of happiness"
"We're just trying to bring a little bit of happiness to them while they're going through a tough time," said Brad Marchand, the team's captain.
During the annual event, the team took over the toy and game section of the store, sporting hockey jerseys and Santa hats.
"It gets the guys rallied around the holiday spirit," said goaltender Jeremy Swayman. "But it's more than that. We're helping out families and kids that need a little bit of love at this time of year."
As they walked through the store, each of them carried clip boards with lists of what they needed. "Art supplies are always a big one, books, music, DVDs," Marchand said.
Money donated by team
The team had a $20,000 budget to purchase the toys and games. That money came from donations from the players themselves and the Boston Bruins Foundation.
"Every person has a budget and we're shopping for a specific amount of kids, certain gender and age groups too," forward Charlie Coyle explained.
Coyle was shopping for toddlers, preschoolers and teenagers.
"I also have teenagers, I have a girl and a boy that I'm shopping for," said Coyle.
In just a few weeks, the players plan to deliver those toys to area hospitals just in time for Christmas.
