PHOENIX — It seems that Santa has some new elves and they're all in Phoenix.
A group of small business owners in south Phoenix are coming together to collect donated toys to pass out to children in the community on Christmas Day.
It's just one way they give back throughout the year.
Abraham Calvillo is the owner of Que Suave Barbershop. He's part of a group of business owners who gather toys from November through Christmas Eve to pass out on Christmas Day.
Called Project Christmas, Calvillo and his wife started it in 2018, the first year they opened their business.
"It was one of those years where you know you get tired of buying your kids everything they want," Calvillo said. "We decided what we could do to give back, so we just went on a little shopping spree."
A lot goes into it.
"It started with the back of a truck bed first year, very humbled beginning, second year we did a 17-foot flatbed trailer... probably 1,200 toys and third year, by the grace of God, we hit about 3,000 toys," Calvillo said.
They haul the toys in trailers, caravanning with show cars and motorcycles.
"Just trying to go out an bless somebody who is less fortunate," he said. "The biggest thing we scream on the microphone is 'remember this day' - remember somebody who walked through these projects, through these neighborhoods came back to bless, with all my friends, to take care of them, the people, the streets that raised us basically."
For Project Christmas 2021, they once again plan to go to housing projects around South Phoenix and pass out toys to children on Christmas Day.
Calvillo calls it a movement of unity.
"A pretty cool experience," he said. "Where a lot of people come together from a lot of different backgrounds."
Calvillo hopes by organizing projects like this one and offering haircuts for the homeless, others are inspired to pay if forward.
"Trying to get people out there from the homeless community, to escape their situation for a day, you know and build them up," he said.
His main goal is to bring the community together and help others.
Making a difference one toy… and hair cut at a time.
More information on Project Christmas can be found here.
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