Coplay Sports held its annual Santa parade Dec. 16. This parade is a decadeslong annual event that delivers gifts to Coplay Borough children and creates lifelong memories.

Dedicated Coplay Sports volunteers covered every street in Coplay. The borough fire and police departments assist the Coplay Sports volunteers in coordinating the parade, which started 10 a.m. and ended close to 5 p.m.

Because there was no snow, Santa’s sled was pulled by a pickup truck, as Santa gave children presents and his elves handed out candy treats.

The Miletics family, of Coplay, enjoyed its time meeting Santa.

Youngster Sadie Oruska was thrilled to shake Santa’s hand as his sled went by her parents’ home.

Coplay Sports was founded in 1955. The group’s goals are to create valuable memories, personal development through team sports and fun for the Coplay community kids and their families.

Toys for Tots is another measure of Coplay Sports volunteer activities, fulfilling its goals to assist kids. This assistance was demonstrated with its third year of participation in the program.

Toys for Tots began in 1947 as the brain child of Marine Corps Reserve Major Bill Hendricks, who said his wife, Diane, was the real inspiration. She handcrafted dolls and asked her husband to give them to an organization that delivers toys to kids in need. When they couldn’t find a group fitting the bill, they decided to start one.

Hendricks and his Marines associates collected and distributed 5,000 toys in 1947. Currently, the Toys for Tots program collects about 18 million toys nationwide that get distributed to about 7 million less-fortunate children annually.

Joining the Toys for Tots program, its team sports programs and its annual Santa Run, Coplay Sports fulfills its goals and echoes the famous anonymous quote, “When you are kind to children, it not only changes you - it changes the world.”

Visit coplaysports.org to volunteer, help coach or donate.