INDIANAPOLIS — As Christmas carols played in the background, Indianapolis native Amp Harris and a handful of volunteers did what they’ve been doing for almost the past two weeks at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
They organized the thousands of toys that Harris, a business marketer, event promoter and businessman, will give away Saturday afternoon at the "15th Annual Amp Harris and Friends Put a Smile on a Child’s Face for Christmas Toy Giveaway."
“This is basically the quiet before the storm, is what I call it, or the storm before the quiet,” said Harris.
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The quiet, though, doesn’t seem to be happening any time soon.
This year, 1,200 kids will have smiles on their faces come Christmas morning at an event that started years ago with 300 kids and has only gotten bigger with each year.
“The 'Put a Smile On a Child’s Face for Christmas Toy Giveaway' is really about giving them hope and giving those parents, those single parents, hope to let them know you’re not in the struggle by yourself,” said Harris.
This is the second year the event is being held at IMS because of COVID-19.
“COVID taught me to bend, but not break and it’s a lot of people when they get hit in situations like that, it’s easy to break,” Harris said.
Harris said his 90-year-old mother Geneva is his inspiration.
“She is my superhero, because she, throughout it all, she could have broken during those many Christmases where she rode the bus to get us toys and now it’s like I’m in a position that I look back and I realize how much she had to endure for me to have a pair of socks under the Christmas tree,” said Harris.
Harris started a foundation last year where people can donate to help with the toy drive, but for years, and still to a big degree, is funded right out of his own pocket.
“I never have forgotten who I was or where I came from and once I got to a point where I knew I could do more, I pushed myself to do more,” Harris explained.
It’s a big undertaking every year, for sure. Harris and volunteers shop for all the toys themselves.
For Harris, though, it’s a labor of love.
“That’s what the world should be about. We need more people to understand what love and hope is,” said Harris.
Saturday’s event begins at 2:30 p.m. at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.