Hundreds of presents have been donated to children who would otherwise go without this Christmas thanks to help from DSU.
Hundreds of presents have been donated to children who would otherwise go without this Christmas thanks to help from De Montfort Students’ Union (DSU).
Students and staff from both DSU and De Montfort University (DMU) donated toys and their time to wrap gifts for Toys on the Table, a charitable organisation which gives toys to almost 4,000 children in Leicester and the Leicestershire area who otherwise wouldn’t receive anything on Christmas day.
After weeks of toy donations and fundraising, over 30 student and staff volunteers came together on Wednesday afternoon at the Big Wrap organised by DSU Volunteering to wrap more than 300 hundred presents.
Caylee Gutsell, third year Arts and Festival Management student and Community Events Frontrunner at DSU, said: “Toys on the Table is an amazing initiative.
“I knew about it before I started working here – in fact it was one of the main things that drew me to the job.
“I think that Christmas should be a time of giving and people spend thousands of pounds on presents when there are some children who won’t get anything. Just one toy for them could make their whole Christmas.
“The turnout of volunteers for the Big Wrap has been the best it has ever been, and the students and staff from both DSU and the university have been amazing.”
Caylee Gutsell, Community Events Frontrunner at DSU, and Terry Watts, President of Toys on the Table, with just some of the 300 plus donated toys.
Students and staff alike were on hand to help wrap the gifts; including Sarah Newton, a first year Educations Studies student. She said: “I heard about Toys on the Table and thought that it was a great idea.
“I even stood up at the end of one of my lectures to tell everyone else about it to try and get as many people involved as possible!”
Terry Watts, President of Toys on the Table, said: “We’ve come to De Montfort [Students’ Union] six or seven years now and this year is as good as – if not better than – any year we’ve been before.”
“I have been a part of Toys on the Table since the rebirth in the early 2000s and there’s a really good selection of toys and gifts here so we have done really well.
“All of the volunteers are really pleased and satisfied to know that we have made a real difference.”
