By JEFF CLEMETSON
Mission Times Courier & College Times Courier

San Diegans really worked together to make this year’s Stuffed Animal Drive a huge success.

On Saturday morning, Oct. 24, hundreds of cars drove through 11 locations around the county donating thousands of new stuffed animals that will provide comfort to sick children and their siblings during their stay at the Ronald McDonald House.

Pastor John Quinata of Our Father’s Grace Ministries has organized this event for the past five years. This year, 51 congregations of different faiths and numerous businesses participated in this county-wide drive-thru event. A generous printer and graphic designer also donated their time to help.

Eleven parking lots around the county were set up with tables, collection boxes, storage boxes, and masked and gloved volunteers. Volunteers gathered the donations from each car and then tied a tag with a special message to each stuffed animal. The tag read “A Gift of Love, Hope & Prayers from Our Father’s Grace Ministries and the Interfaith Community of San Diego.”

Drop-off locations were in University City, Clairemont, Carmel Valley, La Costa, Chula Vista, Imperial Beach, Bonita, El Cajon, Mission Valley, Allied Gardens, and San Carlos. Volunteers used the JustServe.org website to find the location nearest them to drop-off their stuffed animals.

Thanks to this “labor of love” by so many good and generous San Diegans, Pastor John will be delivering over 2,400 stuffed animals to the Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Diego.

— Reach editor Jeff Clemetson at [email protected].