For nearly a decade, North Allegheny’s Athletic Department and the Unified Boosters Organization have run a fundraising campaign to bring the holidays to those less fortunate. ‘Tis the Toys for Tigers season.
Each year, members of the Athletic Department like Director Bob Bozzuto take time to reach out to economically challenged families in the North Hills area.
“It makes us feel that we’re making a difference for families,” Bozzuto said.
Every family selected for the Toys for Tigers program receives food, toys, clothes, and gift certificates for restaurants and grocery stores, ensuring that children’s needs and wants are met. The program’s resemblance to the popular Toys for Tots program is no coincidence.
“Toys for Tots programs are around the country. Toys for Tigers is to keep it specific to North Allegheny,” Bozzuto explained.
The program’s local focus allows for donations to be personalized. Recommendations for toys, clothing sizes for the children, and even the colors they like are all taken into account when families are shopped for. Sometimes, families make lists themselves.
“If there’s something specific for a family listed, we’re going to get it for them,” Bozzuto said.
The North Allegheny community comes together for both direct and monetary donations each year, providing around $200 in gifts for each child in Toys for Tigers families. It is important to the Toys for Tigers program–and Bozzuto personally–that each child receives an equal amount of gifts.
“The minimum is $175, [and] if you have a family of three kids and you spend $200 on one, we want you to spend that on all of them,” Bozzuto said. “We want things to stay even. It is very very rewarding to know you’re helping people who live in our communities.”
Each year, the program aims to raise an astonishing $20,000 for local underprivileged families.
“Whatever it takes to support our community,” Bozzuto said on the topic of monetary goals.
But if monetary support is unachievable for some students, there are other ways to support Toys for Tigers.
“If students want to help with shopping or something like that, they can notify us,” Bozzuto said. “The Boys’ Lacrosse Team, Bocce Team, football linemen, and many other teams wrap or shop. There are a lot of different ways students can get involved.”
The help is always appreciated, as Toys for Tigers has grown in scale over the years.
“We’re always trying to make it bigger and bigger and bigger,” Bozzuto said. “We’re always looking for ways to better it.”
Previously, this expansion has included supporting other programs, such as collecting coats and food for the North Hills Community Outreach organization. Bozzuto emphasized that Toys for Tigers aims to assist underprivileged local families through every opportunity that emerges.
Efforts for expanding Toys for Tigers also cover increasing the program’s publicity.
“I’d like to get a black and gold sleigh to put out at the stadium so people know what we are and what we’re doing,” Bozzuto explained.
The large, cheerful sign that has been placed outside of NASH is another one of these efforts. It features a bright image of tigers pulling a sleigh full of gifts and a QR code that leads scanners to information about Toys for Tigers. The design was thought of by Bozzuto himself, who noted that the six tigers pulling the sleigh represent WPIAL Class 6A sports, and the black and gold coloring throughout represents North Allegheny’s school colors.
“This is a great time to give back and help people who are in need,” Bozzuto said.
