The holiday season is upon us, and the Plainview Water District Board of Commissioners, Kevin Langberg, Joel Kessler and Edward Shulroff have joined forces with John Theissen Children's Foundation (formerly known as Toys for Sick Children), a nonprofit organization that provides toys to sick and less fortunate children in local hospital pediatric wards and shelters. For the past six years, the water district has worked in conjunction with John Theissen Children's Foundation to help brighten the holiday season for less fortunate children. Residents interested in contributing should bring new unwrapped toys to the Plainview Water District Administration Building, 10 Manetto Hill Road, by 4 p.m., Friday, Dec. 15.

Since its inception in 1992, John Theissen Children's Foundation has collected over 300,000 new toys during its annual toy drive, donating these toys to sick and needy children in over 90 hospitals and child-care facilities. The goals of the organization are to provide hospitals and child-care facilities with recreational and therapeutic equipment. In addition, the organization provides larger items such as televisions, VCRs, video games, arts and craft supplies, high chairs and strollers, to hospitals and child-care facilities in the New York area.

"The holiday season is supposed to be a time of joy and with assistance from our generous residents we hope to brighten the season for sick children," stated Commissioner Langberg. "We can only hope that this year's toy drive is as successful as the previous years."

Toys for Sick Children was coordinated by John Theissen, who at the age of 17 and recovering from surgery on a brain tumor befriended a 7 year-old girl being treated for leukemia. During his recovery he noticed her loneliness and on the day of the hospital's Christmas party, Theissen remembered the little girl excitedly anticipating her family joining her for the festivities. When her parents did not show, Theissen asked his parents to take the young girl to the party, where she told Santa all she wanted for Christmas was a teddy bear for her friend John. After leaving the hospital, Theissen never again saw the girl but her memory still remained in his heart.