The Great Nanaimo Toy Drive provided gifts for over 1,800 local children this year, thanks to generous donors. Over 900 toys were collected by members of the Nanaimo Fire Rescue at various drop-off locations around Nanaimo on Dec. 16. (Submitted)

By Jordan Davidson

season of giving

‘A Christmas miracle:’ increased demand matched by donations for Nanaimo charities

Dec 24, 2025 | 4:00 PM

NANAIMO — With Christmas only a couple of sleeps away, local charities are wrapping up their annual holiday fundraisers, with a greater demand being seen matched by a generous community.

A record number of families signed up for this year’s Great Nanaimo Toy Drive, with organizers calling for more volunteers to help collect and sort the mountain of donations received.

Toy Drive board chair Janet Mirau spoke with NanaimoNewsNOW on Dec. 23, following their weekend of helping parents and guardians pick out gifts for their kids.

“It really is a Christmas miracle. We not only got all the volunteers that we needed, we had hundreds of volunteers… it is absolutely magnanimous that so many people came forward and brought gifts and presents. We had literally thousands of gifts, books, toys, stocking stuffers, games, puzzles.”

She said around 850 families and 1,800 children in the Nanaimo and surrounding area received a Christmas gift, with volunteers acting as “personal shoppers” to help find the right gift.

Best in Sport

Nanaimo celebrates Sport Achievement Awards and Hall of Fame inductions

4h ago

ROAD WORKS

Another multi-hour closure planned for Hwy. 4 at Cameron Lake

9h ago

Bruender Magic

Clippers top Chiefs in overtime thriller

11h ago

Last year, they helped 1,600 children and 750 families pick out Christmas gifts.

The Toy Drive wasn’t the only local charity which saw a greater need this year, with the donations responding in kind.

Coats for Christmas, put on by Youth Network of Volunteer Nanaimo, are also celebrating a massive increase in donations this year.

Over 2,660 items of warm winter gear were collected during the drop-off day at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church on Dec. 13, an increase of 860 items from last year.

Over 2,600 warm winter items were donated for this years Coats for Christmas. (Submitted, YouthNetwork Nanaimo on Facebook)

Meanwhile, The Nanaimo Shoebox Project, which collected donations generally geared toward women experiencing or impacted by homelessness.

They managed to surpass their goal by collecting 232 shoeboxes, which were distributed to the Island Crisis Care Society, Risebridge, and Pacifica Housing.

Mirau said while the need continues to grow every year, community members and businesses continue to step up proportionally with their donations.

She said they heard from people about how difficult their year has been, and how grateful they are to be able to provide some gifts for their little ones this Christmas.

“That part, the thankfulness, it goes all the way around, that’s the reason why we do this work, it’s real heart work that we do. The stories that we heard really, really tug at your heartstrings, and so to be able to do this one, small thing, can really fill their hearts over the holidays.”

Volunteers met at the Royal Canadian Legion Mount Benson Branch 256 to organize the shoeboxes, with students from Quarterway Elementary providing hand-made cards. (The Nanaimo Shoebox Project on Facebook)

Follow us on Facebook. Join Everything Nanaimo on Facebook and stay connected with everything happening on central Vancouver Island.

info@nanaimonewsnow.com

Follow us on: Twitter (X) | Bluesky | Facebook