Photo Provided St. Clairsville High School cheerleaders hold toys they purchased and collected for their toy drive that will provide children in need with gifts for Christmas. Pictured in the front row from left are Alexa Plumby and Mady Drosieko. In the middle row are Ava Crum, left, and Brynlee Newton. In the back row from left are Ashlynn Stock, Angelina Applegarth and Alivia DaRe’.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — In an effort to spread some holiday cheer among local youth, the St. Clairsville High School cheerleaders are sponsoring a Snack with Santa event while collecting toys for children in need.

The event is set to take place in two sessions on Saturday, Dec. 3, at the elementary school. The first is at 11 a.m. and the second is at 2 p.m.

Shawn Tomlan, cheer coach, said this will be the first time the team has held the event, with hopes of making it annual if it is well received. Cheerleaders will be working the event, providing games and entertainment to those in attendance. Santa Claus will also be there to interact and take photos with attendees.

Tomlan said they previously held a “Bunny Breakfast” for Easter that was successful, and that prompted the cheerleaders to want to hold another for the Christmas season.

“The cheerleaders get a lot of support from our community, and we just felt it was our turn to give back to our community,” she said. “We thought if there are families in need and we can help out in any way and help provide a better Christmas for our community families in need, we felt it would be something nice for us to do.”

The cheerleaders have been busy purchasing and collecting toys for less fortunate children in the community. The event will double as a toy drive.

“If anybody that is attending, anybody in town or if anyone would like to purchase a toy, we can come pick it up. Or if they would like to give a donation, we can go out shopping for them,” Tomlan said.

There is not a set number of children selected at this time to receive the gifts; however, all the toys will be provided to students enrolled in the elementary school.

Tomlan said any elementary-aged student in the Ohio Valley is welcome to attend the Snack with Santa event.

“Anybody from any community is invited to come to Snack with Santa,” she added.

There is a ticket fee, which includes pizza, drinks, cookie decorating, games and photos with Santa. The funds garnered from the event will be used to purchase additional toys for local children.

“If you are looking to donate for Christmas and you don’t know who to donate to, we are donating to families in need in the St. Clairsville community,” she said.

The toys will be given out to families in the community prior to Christmas break.

Anyone interested in purchasing a ticket to the event can call Tomlan at 740-359-8145.