Local News and Opinion for San Diego

Bryan Bainqualls saw the sunnier side of life Saturday as he helped Rock Church volunteers distribute food, religious books and toys to hundreds of family members in El Cajon.

“It brings joy to my heart to be able to get out and see others and not be confined inside of a hospital setting where you’ve got just so much going on around you,” said Bainqualls, 50, a Scripps Hospital emergency room technician.

“It’s been amazing,” said the Pacific Beach resident. “This is a very different year for us, but it’s been unbelievably good to serve the community.”

Greg Hendricks, campus pastor for the Rock Church in El Cajon, calls this year’s version of Toys for Joy “an extension of our church’s heart.”

“Even though we are socially distant, and everyone has masks on, we still have the same heartbeat, where we can get together,” the pastor said. “We can come out and be a representation of hope, especially right now.”

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Hendricks noted how people are really struggling in this season, “so we just wanted to be creative and thank God that it did actually work out, and it’s been great so far.”

Six hundred carloads of families were registered to receive holiday goodies at the Cajon Valley Middle School location, one of four distribution centers in the county on Saturday.

In all, 3,700 families were pre-registered for this 24th annual event. More than 166,900 children and their families have taken part over the years.

In previous years, children chose a favorite gift from the mountains of toys set up. This year’s drive-up event was designed to adhere to health officials rules for COVID-19: masks, hand sanitizer and contact-less service.

In a well-organized procession, cars were lined up along tables and boxes of toys. Volunteers checked on gender and age of children in the car. The volunteers chose age-appropriate toys and handed them to the children or put them in car trunks.

Other volunteers loaded boxes of groceries and gave out bags of religious books and materials.

“Where there is a will, there is a way,” one volunteer said as went to help a carload of people.

Pastor Hendricks said Toys for Joy is much-anticipated event for Rock Church.

“It’s a reflection of God’s heart, what He wants us to do for his people,” he said. “He wants us to love one another. Every year, we look forward to this event. There have been so many people who have been impacted by this church.”

Toys for Joy has been working with over 60 schools and agency partners countywide to distribute toys and groceries to families they serve, organizers say.

Donation partners this year included Express Feedback for Good, Gomez Trial Attorneys, Hands of Hope, RF Exposure, Thank You Heroes Home Rebate, and Vessel Bags.

Rock Church, with more than 20,000 members, aids community members with toys, clothing and food, in addition to health and community services.

“More than ever, people need to step up and help those who are in need this year,” said senior Pastor Miles McPherson in a statement. “Christmas is a time when God showed His love for us, and we’re ready to show God’s love in the communities where we live and serve. That’s the purpose of the church.”

Said volunteer Bainqualls: “It’s nice to get to bring joy to somebody’s face just to let them know that there is hope. And we will get through this together as families and as a body and be able to help others.”

“It’s just lending that simple hand to the other person.”

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