PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — For decades, Toys for Tots Pinellas has helped make the holiday season brighter for children in need. This year, as demand reaches a record high, the organization is also facing a challenge of its own: finding a permanent place to operate.

What You Need To Know

Toys for Tots is one of the largest missions of the Marine Corps Reserves

This year’s operation is based at the former Pinellas Gulf Coast Academy campus, a school that closed because of low enrollment

Marines say a permanent home would help streamline logistics and allow them to focus on what matters most: helping families facing economic hardship experience a joyful holiday season

This is the largest year on record for Toys for Tots Pinellas, with 9,500 children signed up to receive gifts. Wednesday is the last day for toy donations, with distribution scheduled for Friday and Saturday

Each year for about two months, Marines and volunteers transform temporary warehouse space into what they call Santa’s workshop. Inside, new, unwrapped toys are collected, sorted and prepared for children ranging from infancy through age 12.

“We’ve done over seven million gifts and three million kids,” said Ed Zaleski, the Toys for Tots Pinellas coordinator.

Toys for Tots is one of the largest missions of the Marine Corps Reserves. Zaleski has coordinated those efforts across the Tampa Bay region for 16 years, including the past decade in Pinellas County.

“The idea is to empower the family and bring a smile to a child’s face on Christmas,” Zaleski said.

This year’s operation is based at the former Pinellas Gulf Coast Academy campus, a school that closed because of low enrollment. From the parking lot to the inside of the building, nearly every inch of the space is being used. However, whether the organization will remain there long term is still uncertain.

“So I always say, like 35,000 square feet is what we need to actually do this the right way. And we ask every year to get us home,” Zaleski said. “Hopefully, we can stay here for a while. We’ll see what happens. But it’s hard to find that home every year.”

As the Pinellas County School District continues discussions about potentially shuttering and repurposing additional school sites, the future use of properties like this one remains unclear. Toys for Tots Pinellas hopes to be part of that conversation and secure another lease to continue operating at the location.

“For us, it’d be a great gift because then we can refine our system, because our goal is to do more and more every year,” Zaleski said. “And if we know where we’re at and we can set up earlier and get things running faster, it helps the community know where to come back.”

Marines say a permanent home would help streamline logistics and allow them to focus on what matters most: helping families facing economic hardship experience a joyful holiday season.

This is the largest year on record for Toys for Tots Pinellas, with 9,500 children signed up to receive gifts. Wednesday is the last day for toy donations, with distribution scheduled for Friday and Saturday.