The partners, who aim to fill Santa’s boots by collecting toys for kids in need, launched the 2008 Toys For Tots program at the Oakville Canadian Tire store at Dundas Street and Trafalgar Road last Friday morning.

This is the ninth annual edition of Toys for Tots.

“To me, it’s about one child, one toy and one smile. I want to make sure, with the help of my associates and colleagues, that every child who wants to be on Santa’s list is on Santa’s list,” said Sherrie Sadauskas.

Sadauskas is the provincial firearms officer for the Halton police and co-ordinates the Toys for Tots program with Det. Const. Mike Skoularicos.

Among Santa’s helpers is Halton Honda, which donates a car to collect and deliver the toys.

“There’s a lot of running around,” admitted Sadauskas.

Halton police will take care of the Christmas shopping and “sleigh” part of the effort for Santa while the Salvation Army manages Santa’s list by distributing the toys to those in need.

That happens as clients, who qualify for Christmas assistance, attend the Salvation Army’s toy depot where they are able to “shop” for toys suitable for their children.

“We don’t have to go far, even in our own municipality, to find people far less fortunate,” said Halton Police Chief Gary Crowell, who tipped his hat to the late Jim Richmond of the Peel Regional Police, as the founder of the Toys for Tots program.

“Jim was a very kind, caring and compassionate and he was a person who always believed that there was much more out there to give than he could give.”

Also in town to give the Toys for Tots program a boost was Walter Gretzky.

“It’s so wonderful what’s going to happen at Christmas,” said Gretzky of the Toys for Tots program.

The program assisted 900 families in Halton last year.

Skoularicos said that represented about $54,000 worth of toys for needy local kids.

“We’re hoping to eclipse that by a significant margin this year,” he said.

“We’re going to top that this year,” echoed Sadauskas.

The seven Canadian Tire stores in Halton — three in Oakville, two in Burlington and those in Milton and Georgetown — are collecting cash and Canadian Tire money from tomorrow until the Sunday before Christmas.

At that time, the money raised at each store, will be used to buy toys which will be delivered to toy depots operated by the Salvation Army in each of Halton’s four communities.

“What is raised in each community will go to families in each community,” said Skoularicos.

If you want to donate and give items instead of cash, Skoularicos admitted that, as usual, gifts for teens prove the toughest to collect.

There’s no shortage of toy donations for young children, but those aged six to 15 are, apparently, tougher to buy for.

Skoularicos suggested gift cards, movie tickets, inexpensive MP3 players and games with some type of electronic component to them.

Gift cards can also be used to purchase items that are appealing to teens, by the teens themselves, at a later date.

Cash and Canadian Tire money donations are collected in boxes at each of the Canadian Tire stores. The boxes say: Wanted by Police: Toys for Tots.

People who prefer to donate new, unwrapped toys can do so at any local police station, police headquarters on Bronte Road at the QEW, the Salvation Army or participating local businesses — a full list of drop off locations is available through the Halton police web-site at www.hrps.on.ca .