It began on Dec. 8 when more than 20 volunteers gathered at the Soboba Springs Golf Course to unpack the truckload of boxed toys delivered from the Walmart Supercenter in Beaumont.

Sponsorship Coordinator Andrew Vallejos said in April, Soboba Foundation members were trying to find a way to make this year’s toy distribution process easier and the Beaumont store stepped up. “They discounted a lot of nice toys and actually gave us more,” he said. “They have been amazing. They were able to just take everything we wanted and send it to their warehouses, have everything separated and distributed. They made everything very easy.”

This is the first year for the Beaumont store to partner with Soboba. Store Lead Julio Ortiz, who has worked at Walmart for 21 years, said it took 10 associates two days to pull the 5,000 toys to fulfill the order that was broken down by age group and gender. It took about three weeks to coordinate everything before the delivery could be made.

Ortiz said other Walmart employees who were instrumental in making this happen were Store Manager Jessica Lewis and Coaches Daniel Lemus and Geovanny Contreras.

During the week of Dec. 8, a team of volunteers met at the Soboba Springs Golf Course to unpack toys that were purchased in bulk from Beaumont’s Walmart Supercenter. It took three days for the team to sort the toys by age groups and designated recipients so their scheduled pickups could be seamless.

“I’d have to say this year a highlight was the amount of volunteer help we had the first day unboxing the toy shipment from Walmart,” Soboba Foundation Secretary Joseph Placencia said. “Not only was it my usual crew, but the Soboba Fire Department and Soboba Department of Parks and Recreation came by to help out. It was nice to see everyone lending a hand and showing they cared.”

At 5:30 p.m. on Dec. 8, at least 150 community volunteers gathered at the San Jacinto Unified School District to participate in the 12^th annual Unstuff the Bus event, presented by the Soboba Foundation. Stefany Curiel is the Family & Community Engagement Specialist at the district’s Parent Center and she explained how the process works. The toys are passed along a human chain that stretches from the parked bus to a warehouse where they stayed until the district hosted their holiday party on Dec. 13 when the toys would be given to those families identified by school site liaisons.

Superintendent David Pyle welcomed everyone and said a few words while awaiting the arrival of the stuffed bus. “I want to give an especially big shout out to our friends from Soboba,” he said. “This event obviously wouldn’t be possible each and every year without them; having their support means so much. This program for our community is just one single reminder about how many ways Soboba gives back to San Jacinto and the whole valley. So, let’s please have a big round of applause for our partners at Soboba. And Happy Holidays to everyone.”

Pyle also noted that each school site shared with their families that the distribution of toys would not have been possible without the support of Soboba. “We are truly grateful for our continued relationship,” he said.

After less than 30 minutes, all 800 toys were sorted and stacked on tables inside the warehouse, and everyone was asked to assemble inside for a group photo.

Soboba Foundation President Andy Silvas acknowledged and thanked all the Soboba Tribal members who were there. “I want to thank all the team members who came out to volunteer to help us give back to the community and to everyone who showed they care for the people of this community. It’s a great event, and I enjoy being here every year.”

Soboba Tribal Council Treasurer and Soboba Foundation Board Member Adona Salgado said, “Attending the toy distribution for the first time was especially meaningful as it coincided with my older sister’s birthday. After celebrating with family and friends, we ended our day by giving back. Witnessing how our Tribe is able to bless others during the holiday season makes my heart happy.”

Early the following morning, Soboba Tribal members and other volunteers were at the Soboba Springs Golf Course once again to meet with selected nonprofits, Tribal organizations and other surrounding Tribes who came by to pick up toys that were allocated for their holiday events.

Haily Perez is a member of the new Aspiring Leaders at Mt. San Jacinto College. She said community service is the goal of the club, and this event was the first opportunity members had to participate. Soboba’s Tara Placencia and several of her family members are steadfast volunteers at many Tribal events and this year was no exception. She said the previous day was the hardest part, having to unpack all the boxes. “Today is fun, seeing all the groups come by to pick up the toys that are being donated to them for the holidays,” Placencia said.

Tribal member Josh Lala stayed busy loading vehicles with toys. He also supports the Kids of Anza nonprofit who received 100 toys for their Dec. 20 party. Executive Director Russell Kitchen said the rural population benefits from the organization’s car shows, food drives, a Valentine’s Day dance, plus Christmas and Easter parties held at different venues in the community. They also sponsor sports and scholarships for the youth. “I like to help out when I can,” Lala said.

The evening of Dec. 10 was when a Soboba bus filled with 1,000 toys arrived at Tahquitz High School to be emptied out by a dedicated team of volunteers. Many students, as well as Hemet Police Department officers and Explorers also pitched in.

HUSD Superintendent Christi Barrett said, “The generosity of the Soboba Foundation makes Unstuff the Bus such a powerful demonstration of our community’s commitment to students. Their support ensures that Hemet Unified students experience the joy of the season through thoughtful gifts and heartfelt generosity. I’m deeply grateful to our partners, families, and especially our students who participate with such energy and heart.”

Miriam Ortiz, Coordinator for the district’s School, Family & Community Partnerships, said most of the toys would be given out at the Christmas Party to be held at Tahquitz High School on Dec. 13 while others were going to the Wellness & Community Outreach Center for its holiday event. Ortiz likes seeing and hearing the families who are so grateful for Soboba’s generosity. She finds these words of gratitude to be powerful, showing the impact this event has on the community. She shared a few comments received after last year’s event. “Thank you so much for supporting my boys. We appreciate you so much.” “We’ve had a very rough year, and you are giving us a much-needed miracle!!” “Thank you for helping me this Christmas, it is truly a blessing. I promise to pay it forward.”

Soboba Foundation Treasurer Dondi Silvas eagerly helped at both district events, riding on the bus and being one of the first in a long line of bucket, or rather toy, brigade participants.

“Being part of the Tribe’s outreach—particularly during the holidays—reminds us how powerful compassion and community can be,” Silvas said. “I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to support these efforts and to help share the spirit of giving that defines our Tribe.”

Vallejos said all events were a lot of fun for those involved and that the buses were unstuffed in record time at both district locations. “Everything has been smooth. You can’t say much more about this except it was perfect,” he said. “It warms my heart to see so many people come out to support this Soboba Gives Back event that provides such a positive impact on the kids in these communities.”

Joseph Placencia said, “For me this event is about knowing that children who might have been going without are going to have a present to open on Christmas.”

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It takes a lot of planning and preparation to make this happen and Soboba Foundation members started working with the Walmart Supercenter in San Jacinto in September to secure enough toys to cover all the requests. With age groups of infants through teens, the team members at Walmart helped choose toys that would appeal to the children.

The first, and largest, event was on Dec. 9 when hundreds of volunteers arrived at the San Jacinto Unified School District offices to Unstuff the Soboba bus that was filled with 800 toys. Led to the warehouse parking lot by a Soboba Fire engine, the bus came to a halt at the end of two long lines of helpers who passed the toys along in bucket brigade fashion to sorters waiting inside the warehouse. It took about 20 minutes for all the toys to be stacked on designated tables.

There was lots of hot chocolate, Christmas themed cookies and a variety of tamales to keep everyone warm and content while they waited for the bus to arrive. It was a welcome opportunity for community members to connect outside of their traditional roles, coming together for a shared purpose.

Recipients of the delivered gifts were chosen by SJUSD school site family liaisons who provide a list of children’s ages and genders. The following day, toys were bagged up and tagged for each of the families to pick up while enjoying a visit to Santa’s Village, held at the same location on Saturday, Dec. 14.

“We try to make it cute and festive for our families,” said Sheila Blythe, School, Family, & Community Liaison at the district’s Family Engagement Center. Working with the center’s Family & Community Engagement Specialist Stefany Curiel, the duo assists the school site family liaisons in making sure all needs are met for the annual event.

SJUSD Superintendent David Pyle welcomed everyone when it was announced that the bus was a mere block away from the location.

“If you haven’t been to this event before, you are in for a treat,” he told the crowd. “This is our 15^th year that we’re doing the Unstuff the Bus. It was brought to us by Rose Salgado (from Soboba), who we miss dearly. Rose brought it to our district in 2009 and the tradition continues today.”

Pyle was appreciative and thankful to all who came which included members of the Hemet-San Jacinto Valley Chamber of Commerce, the Greater San Jacinto Valley Chamber of Commerce, several first responders, City of San Jacinto staff and Councilmembers, as well as SJUSD staff, teachers, administrators, students and their families.

“This is always such a great night that comes on the heels of November’s turkey distribution by Soboba,” said Pyle, who joined the district in 2020. “These are just bigger events that add to all the other contributions the Tribe makes to us and our students. We couldn’t do what we do without our strong partnership with Soboba.”

Soboba Foundation President Dondi Silvas was at the start of one of the lines receiving gifts that were offloaded from the bus by members of the Soboba Fire Department and others. Also on hand was Foundation Secretary Andy Silvas, Tribal Council members Mike Bentiste, Daniel Valdez and Chairman Isaiah Vivanco. Maria Vivanco, who also was helping on behalf of the Friends of Valley-Wide Foundation, stood near Soboba Tribal member Rhianna Salgado who was joined by fellow Air Force JROTC members from San Jacinto High School.

“We are happy to be able to help and contribute to those that are in need, especially at this time of the year,” said Chairman Vivanco, who has served on the Soboba Tribal Council since 2015. “It’s great to see all these volunteers out here helping us unstuff the bus. It brings the community that much more together; it’s pretty cool.”

More than 3,000 toys were distributed to area churches, youth groups, nonprofits and other Tribal communities on Dec. 10 and 11. This was followed by another Unstuff the Bus event at Tahquitz High School on Dec. 12 for needy families whose children attend Hemet Unified schools.

After the bus arrived at the high school at 5:30 p.m., hundreds of volunteers made a two-line brigade that led from the parking lot to the cafeteria. Lots of colorful lights decorated an archway under which the helpers stood. Inflatables, hot cocoa, cookies and tamales greeted those who arrived about 60 minutes before the bus so they could mingle while holiday songs blared from the loudspeakers.

It took about 30 minutes for all 1,000 toys to make their way from the bus to the waiting hands inside the food kiosk room where items were sorted by gender and age group. Tahquitz High School office manager Joi Burden has been volunteering for the event since the program began.

“I love coming out to help every year; I always worked in different areas, but I like the sorting area the best,” said Burden, who has been at Tahquitz for the past 15 years and is in her fourth year as office manager. “We usually get a good turnout of students and other school staff to unstuff the bus. It’s a great event and we really appreciate Soboba for doing this.”

Miriam Ortiz, Coordinator, School, Family and Community Partnerships at HUSD, said about 25 school site liaisons work hard each year to be sure that the families that need it most are the ones who receive the generous toy donations from the Soboba Foundation. A holiday party for families to come to the school and pick up their gifts amid a festive atmosphere was planned for Dec. 18.

“We usually serve close to 400 to 500 families, depending on the size,” Ortiz said.

Members of the Tahquitz baseball team, ASB, school staff, Principal Andrew Holmes and HUSD Assistant Superintendent of Student Services Mary Wendland were among those who were on hand to assist with the toys. Ortiz said it is nice that Holmes opens his school for all community events.

Hemet Police Sgt. Tim McGinnis was joined by about five officers who were passing the toys along the long line. “Our school resource officers are in the mix; they have numerous events in December,” he said.

“I am so happy to be able to help out every year,” Soboba Foundation President Dondi Silvas said. “To know we are providing families with something to make their Christmas that much brighter is such a blessing. It also fills my heart to see the number of volunteers grow each year to get the buses unstuffed.”

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The Soboba Foundation reached out to a few department stores to help them with this large endeavor, and special elves from the San Jacinto Walmart stepped in to help out. Walmart’s Store Manager Sandy Cifuentes, Academy Lead Lisa Flores and GM Coach Irma Hernandez worked closely with the Foundation’s coordinator Andrew Vallejos in the true spirit of community and Christmas. Cifuentes said, “We appreciate this event and are here to give our support!

And support they did. Before the popular Unstuff the Bus events could take place, Walmart team members shopped, rang up and ensured toy inventory to help accomplish the mission. They also provided manpower to load 1,000 toys onto the Soboba bus for each day of delivery.

“It’s always the season for unity, inclusion and giving,” Vallejos said. “We are grateful to all those who said yes and asked how they could help.”

The first event took place at San Jacinto Unified School District’s main office parking lot on Dec. 5 where hundreds of community members waited for the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians’ bus to arrive. Forming a “toy brigade” from where the bus parked to the entrance of the DO’s warehouse, gifts were passed along one at a time. SJUSD’s School, Family and Community Liaison Sheila Blythe helped members of the San Jacinto High School cheer team and other volunteers sort each gift onto tables labeled for age groups and gender located inside the huge warehouse.

“We love to see everyone out here working together,” Blythe said. 

Soboba Tribal Council and Foundation members were on hand, as well as Soboba Fire Department personnel, working alongside other volunteers as toys were passed down the line. Tribal members were there to help, too.

“It filled my heart to see so many wonderful people come out and jump in to help and be a part of such a huge community giving event,” Carla Adame, Family and Community Engagement Specialist for SJUSD’s Student, Community and Personnel Support Department said.

She explained that each year, the school site family liaisons work with their principals and staff to identify worthy students. There were about 350 families who got selected this year. Plus, they always save a small stash for last-minute needs so there will be close to 400 SJUSD families that Soboba will help this Christmas with their generous donation. The toys were distributed during a Christmas-themed event on Dec. 10 and Adame said she was thankful to all the amazing liaisons, principals and staff who helped make it a great event by decorating beautiful stations.

“Soboba has been one of our biggest and most consistent blessings by far,” Adame said. “It’s never about anything else for them other than to help. They are always asking us how they can help so in turn our district works hard to be the best stewards we can with what they give us for our students and families; we implement equitable systems into each step of our process. We make it fun for our families because at the end of the day we’re all here for them and seeing their grateful, happy faces is what it’s all about.”

Vince Record, SJUSD’s Director of CTE and Special Programs, welcomed all the volunteers and guests at the Unstuff the Bus event and thanked the Soboba Foundation for 13 years of giving back to the San Jacinto district’s families and community.

“The Soboba Gives Back toy distribution program started in 2009 with former Soboba Tribal leader and SJUSD Board Member Rose Salgado, who is dearly missed,” he said. Some of the special guests that were acknowledged with a round of applause included Soboba Tribal Council, Soboba Foundation and Tribal members, Hemet/San Jacinto Valley Chamber of Commerce members and Walmart team members who helped make event possible by providing the toys that were purchased by the Soboba Foundation and Soboba Casino Resort.

San Jacinto Unified Board and Cabinet members, students, staff and families and Riverside County Office of Education’s Superintendent of Schools Edwin Gomez were also introduced before everyone got ready to unstuff the bus. Hot chocolate and fresh cookies were provided by the district’s Nutritional Services Department and the holiday music was turned up as the crowd cheered the arrival of the bus, led by a Soboba Fire engine.

Cathi Hill and Billie Jo Williams, from the American Cancer Society, said they were happy to help out at such a great event. “We are always happy to support Soboba because they do so much for the American Cancer Society and the community,” Hill said.

Soboba Tribal Chairman Isaiah Vivanco said, “We are thankful to be in a position to help out others. The Tribe has had its ups and downs this year but we’re still in a position to give back and that’s a good feeling.”

The Soboba bus was then stuffed with another 1,000 toys at the San Jacinto Walmart store on the morning of Dec. 8. That evening, at Tahquitz High School, it was unstuffed for distribution to children within the Hemet Unified School District. Christmas lights shined over the heads of a long line of volunteers who made sure all the toys were safely stored at the school while joyful Christmas music played on loudspeakers.

“We are continually overwhelmed by the generosity of the Soboba Band of Luiseño Indians and their support of our children and families,” Emily Shaw, HUSD’s Director of Wellness and Community Outreach, said. “Through their generous toy donation this year, more than 1,000 children will receive a toy who may otherwise not have gifts. We are extremely grateful for their ongoing support and commitment to our community.”

Miriam Ortiz, HUSD’s Coordinator of School, Family and Community Partnerships, said Hemet families continue to express gratitude for the toy donations.

“The toys provide our parents relief during the holiday season and allows them to sprinkle joy into the lives of their children!” Ortiz said.

 Soboba Tribal Vice Chairwoman Geneva Mojado said she looks forward to connecting with the community at these events. “To see so many people take time to come out to help us secure Christmas gifts for the neediest children in our valley always makes me smile,” she said.

An additional 3,000 toys purchased at Walmart were made available to local nonprofits that serve the mission statement of the Soboba Foundation and had requested the donations. More than 300 Starbucks cards in the amount of $20 each were given to each district as gifts for students 14 and older in selected families receiving toys for their younger siblings.

Soboba Foundation President Dondi Silvas said, “It’s a blessing to be able to help bring some joy and cheer to kids, especially at this time of year.”

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