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Long Island Lutheran Mens Basketball after a short Christmas celebration with their families, traveled down to Charlotte, North Carolina for the Hoodie’s House High School Hoops Classic. To kick off the tournament, the team helped serve food to people in need.

Continuing their mission of giving back to the community, members of the Walter G. O’Connell Copiague High School Key Club, with the assistance of their advisor JoAnn Erwin, collected and donated hundreds of toys to the United States Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program. Through the club’s toy drive, held each year in honor of Marine First Sergeant Samuel T. Erwin Jr. and veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, students successfully filled ten boxes with new and unwrapped toys.

Story and photo courtesy of Copiague School District

BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Dec. 24, 2015) – On Tuesday, the LIU Post men’s lacrosse team showed its Christmas spirit, as it hosted its annual toy drive to benefit the Toys for Tots Foundation.

The student-athletes collected 100 new and unwrapped toys and distributed them out to the less-fortunate children of the community for the holidays.

“It is always great to give back to the community and bring a smile to a child’s face during the holiday season,” said Head Coach John Jez. “The team did a great job of collecting toys for this organization to benefit those in need.”

Local toy collection campaigns for Toys for Tots begin in October and last until mid-to-late-December. Members of the community drop off toys in collection boxes positioned in local businesses. Coordinators then pick up the toys and store them in central warehouses, where the toys are sorted by age and gender. On Christmas, the coordinators, with the assistance of local social welfare agencies, church groups and other local community agencies, distribute the toys to the children in need.

For more information on the Toys for Tots Foundation, please visit ToysforTots.org.

East Islip High School’s varsity softball team and coach Jason McGowan met up at a local Target store before the holidays to participate in the team’s annual shopping extravaganza for the nonprofit Christmas Magic program, coordinated by Hauppauge attorney Charlie Russo.

In conjunction with the Amityville High School WAC PAC, a student leadership program coordinated by McGowan, teens shopped for 84 underprivileged children who attend a daycare center in Middle Island. Each athlete, shopping for two to three children, was given a $100 bill and a handwritten “Dear Santa” list filled with clothing, toys and electronics. “I loved shopping for my little girl,” said student Ashley Benvengo. “It felt good knowing that she woke up Christmas morning and had a bunch of toys.”

IMG_3936: East Islip High School’s varsity softball team shopped for underprivileged children at Target as part of the annual Christmas Magic program.

Photo by East Islip School District

Hampton Bays High School is set to host its annual Coaches vs. Cancer Basketball Tournament on Dec. 28 and Dec 29.

The event features teams, including Westhampton Beach, Sag Harbor, Southold and Eastport, and aims to raise money for the American Cancer Society.

Last year’s event procured $5,000 for the non-profit. The event kicks off on Dec. 28 at 11 a.m. and concludes with championship games on Dec. 29 at 12:45 p.m. and 5:15 p.m. Admission is a donation of $5 for adults and $3 for students 13 and older. Students under 12 are free.

Schedule of games:

Dec. 28

 11 a.m. – Westhampton Beach Boys Basketball vs. Eastport

 12:45 p.m. – Hampton Bays Boys Basketball vs. Southold

 3:30 p.m. – Westhampton Beach Girls Basketball vs. Pierson

 5:15 p.m. – Hampton Bays Girls Basketball vs. Connetquot

Dec. 29

 11 a.m. – Girls Consolation Game

 12:45 p.m. Girls Championship Game

 3:30 p.m. Boys Consolation Game

 5:15 p.m. – Boys Championship Game