Horsepeople in the Dayton, Ohio, vicinity are hoping to make the holiday’s a little happier for some less fortunate children. The Ohio Harness Horsemen’s Association, Dayton Firefighters Local 136 and Hollywood Dayton Raceway have teamed up for their annual toy drive to benefit children in the Dayton area.

"This has been a difficult year with COVID-19, but our horsemen have stepped up again with donations of toys and over $1,100 in cash," said Brett Merkle, OHHA track representative at Dayton. "This will help many children in the Dayton area have a very merry Christmas."

Boxes of toys were loaded into a Dayton Fire Department ambulance at Dayton Raceway on Thursday afternoon (Dec. 17) to be distributed to the children.

Krista Tabor, paramedic and director of special events for Dayton Firefighters Local 136, says they have been doing the toy drive for over 10 years:

"We appreciate the generosity of the horsemen at Dayton Raceway. It gives us the opportunity to help families across the city of Dayton that are less fortunate and allows them to have a merry Christmas."

(Ohio Harness Horsemen's Association)