SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Passing out bikes and gifts on Christmas morning has been a holiday tradition in National City for more than 50 years.
“There is a big difference in actually donating and seeing the children get the toy,” said do-gooder Brian Trum.
Inside a San Diego storage unit, Trum stocked hundreds of toys. No elves are doing the work, but men and women from across the county donating and collecting toys for kids on Christmas.
"It’s only a few days before Christmas, and I go through all toys,” Trum said. “There's probably close to a thousand here.”
Trum is part of the group Christmas with Kids. Every year they collect and donate nearly 200 bikes and more than 1,000 toys to kids in National City.
“There's a lot of great things,” he said. “Seeing kids getting their first bike, it's just phenomenal to watch. I never get tired of it."
The Christmas morning giveaway started more than 50 years ago with Frank King, better known as Santa Frank, and his wife Charlene, helping families out in their neighborhood.
“Frank was the one that got us going on this, and he was a marvelous guy,” Trum said.
After Frank and Charlene’s deaths, Trum kept bringing bikes and joy to kids.
"We started with 25 or 30, and we've seen as much as 225 or something like that,” Trum said.
But getting to that number of bikes is becoming more difficult.
Inflation has taken its toll on the charity.
"People used to say how much do you need, and I'd say 50 bucks, I'll get you a bicycle. That $50 bicycle is now $98."
Money aside, the show must go. Because for Trum and so many others, it's not Christmas morning until they see that smile on a kid's face.
"I started in the '70s, and I plan on doing it until I drop dead. That’s the bottom line on it," he said.
