TOLEDO, Ohio — The festivities during the annual "12 Kids of Christmas" happened a little differently this year.
Pre-pandemic, Toledo police officers would take Brightside Academy students shopping with wish lists in hand. This year, they were given a list and headed to the store, where retail company Meijer took care of it.
The co-founder of "Feet on the Street," Zach Stewart, said they keep coming back each year because it doesn't get old.
"All the work that goes into it - you're like, 'ugh,'" he said. "But then you know when that day happens, you see all the smiles on those kids' faces, you see the smiles on the officers' faces."
The tradition has been happening for over a decade in the Glass City.
Things were a little different this year though because of the pandemic.
The 50 students spent their morning at Imagination Station. They got to eat breakfast and open donated presents from Santa. They even got to show off their moves in a dance-off with Toledo police officers.
Toledo police officers were joined by personnel from other area departments to participate in the fun, too.
Toledo Police Sgt. Joseph Okos said this event goes deeper than what's on the surface. It allows the officers to build strong relationships with the community and it starts with the little ones.
"I work midnights, so I don't see a bunch of 3-and 4-year-olds running around the street - hopefully - in the middle of the night," Okos said. "So, it's a good chance for us to kind of be able to see the public that we don't often get to see and for them to see us in an aspect that isn't just law enforcement."
He said that while a lot of things were different this year, one thing remained the same.
"You know, it just feels good. It's a fun event and it really is good for the community to see us and how we like to do things, especially now," he said. "I like to say that our image - this is what we are, this is what we do."