Excerpts from ABC7chicago.com:

At Advocate Illinois Masonic Hospital, members of the Chicago Fire Department’s 12th Battalion gathered hundreds of gifts for the children who can’t go home this holiday season.

“We don’t bring ten toys, we bring a thousand toys because we stockpile them for the whole year,” said Firefighter Rich Pinkney.

This is the fifteenth year that firefighters from the 12th Battalion, Second District, have been collecting and distributing gifts to children at local hospitals for the holidays.

In this instance, the act of giving is a gift itself, but none are more uplifted by the gesture than the families who benefit from the generosity of others.

The doctors and nurses here know how much the gifts are appreciated and how they serve as a reminder everyone should be given the opportunity to enjoy this special time of year.

Advocate Illinois Masonic is the first of four hospitals to get deliveries this holiday season. Children will be receiving gifts over the next couple of days at Lurie and Comer Children’s Hospitals and Rush University Medical Center.

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