For the 12th consecutive year, Pacers Sports & Entertainment and JAKKS Pacific Toys are teaming up to put smiles on the faces of thousands of Hoosier children this holiday season.
The organizations recently announced the tip-off to the annual PS&E-JAKKS Pacific toy giveaway, which for more than a decade has been a central part of the team’s Season of Giving, delivered by Papa John’s.
Terre Haute is included in this year’s in-person toy distribution, which starts at 3:30 p.m. Monday in Washington Park at 1101 S. 13th St.
The yearly toy giveaway, which this year involves partnerships with more than 80 local nonprofit organizations across Indiana, is made possible by the incredible generosity of JAKKS Pacific founder and CEO Stephen Berman and his long-standing friendship with Herb Simon, chairman and CEO of Pacers Sports & Entertainment.
“Stephen Berman is a truly remarkable person and a very special friend, someone whose immense generosity has made the Holidays memorable for so many Indiana families,” said Simon. “We are all so grateful to him and JAKKS Pacific for making this initiative so impactful year after year.”
“I’d first like to thank the Pacers organization and my dear friend Herb Simon for their shared efforts in bringing joy to the children of Indiana,” said Berman. “I am always delighted to see the positive impact our donation has on so many children and their families.”
Since 2009, the partnership has resulted in hundreds of thousands of toys given away by hundreds of organizations around the state. Additionally, Berman and JAKKS Pacific has responded to children in Indiana and beyond during times of crises. Following the devastating tornado that ravaged Henryville in spring 2012, the company celebrated “Christmas In July” and sent more than 14,000 toys for distribution to local families.
Toys are sorted and delivered to the local partners, who in turn distribute the toys to families they serve in their communities. This year, PS&E partnered with Bosma Enterprises in Indianapolis, one of the Midwest’s largest providers of training and employment for people who are blind or visually impaired, to store and sort thousands of toys for distribution throughout central Indiana.
The Pacers and NBA Commissioner Adam Silver will honor Berman on Dec. 13 with an in-game presentation when the team takes on the Golden State Warriors at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
