 Well, Christmas came early for about 297 families in the Bemidji area. After weeks of collecting toys and donations for the holiday gifts for kids program, today was the big day for distributing all those gifts. The Bemidji Sanford Center played host as parents and shopping assistants got the chance to pick out gifts for the kids on their list. A total of 773 kids will receive a gift through the program this year. While each situation is different for each family, it's all in an effort to help everyone have a merrier Christmas. They don't have the means or you know are under certain circumstances where things are difficult this year. So this allows them to get at least one gift for their child to have under that tree to make their Christmas a little merrier and we hear quite often that people are very appreciative of it. Now any toys that aren't taken and selected this year will be collected at the end and stored for next year's holiday gifts for kids program. If you've enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to Lakeland Public Television.