Published in the December 23, 2015 – January 5, 2016 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Staff Report
Photo by Marty Cheek
Steve Betando, MHUSD superintendent; Claudia Olaciregui, San Martin/Gwinn principal; and Cecelia Ponzini helped collect gifts for needy children.
Hundreds of Morgan Hill Unified School District students will have a much more merry Christmas with toys and books collected from generous local residents by the Edward Boss Prado Foundation. Principals from the various schools gathered at the home of the organization’s founder Cecelia Ponzini Dec. 16 to receive the gifts to distribute to needy children.
“The first time I met Cecelia, I was impressed with her dedication to our children in San Martin and Morgan Hill,” said Claudia Olaciregui, principal at San Martin/Gwinn Environmental Science Academy. “She provides our families with toys for Christmas, and these gifts are priceless for our students. For some of our kids, this is going to be the only Christmas gift they receive. It is incredible how one person can bring joy and happiness to so many people in our community.”
The toy drive is done in partnership with many community leaders and organizations, Ponzini said.
“We provide for families in real need so every child receives toys for Christmas,” she said. “We were able to cover all elementary schools in our vision for the year of 2015. We want the children to wake up Christmas Day with toys just as they should.”
The Edward Boss Prado Foundation was named after Ponzini’s son. It serves the South Valley region with various projects including Cecelia’s Closet and Food Pantry, Walking with Dignity, which provides gift cards for children who need shoes, and No Child Goes Unfed, which provides lunch meals for needy students.
For more information on the foundation, visit www.edwardbossprado.org.
