By Shannon Raneri
The Department of Resident Life’s annual Terp Toy Drive brings together University of Maryland students and College Park residents, according to Dennis Passarella-George, director of the Department of Resident Life.
Students can drop off toys, gift cards and school supplies, along with a surplus of other items, at resident hall service desks until Dec. 10. All donations will be sent to the City of College Park Youth and Family Services office, Passarella-George said. The gifts will be distributed to those aged 18 or younger throughout College Park and beyond whose families may not have the opportunity to give gifts to their children.
Some of the organizations that have received donations in the past include Paint Branch Elementary School, Healthy Families Prince George’s and Hollywood Elementary School, according to The Department of Resident Life’s website.
Passarella-George said he wants students to see that they “are part of something great, something bigger” in the city of College Park.
“It’s a small way to show gratitude and care,” he said.
A community director on South Campus 28 years ago saw a need to give back and connect with the College Park community. Originally, the Terp Toy Drive was called From Our Heart to Yours and was rebranded a few years ago to its current name, Passarella-George added.
Kevin Kerman, a freshman accounting major, said he believes that it’s important to give back to the community and support families that can’t afford gifts and essentials for their children.
“They should be able to celebrate the holidays in the same way that everybody else [does],” Kerman said.
He plans to donate by looking on the Amazon Wishlist and ordering the recommended items, going to some stores and delivering the gifts to the service desks.
The Department of Resident Life hopes to give 1,200 gifts this year, according to their website.
“Especially since we’re college kids, we’re kind of entering a stage in our life where we’re becoming adults… If you look through the toy drive, we can reflect on the part of life we’re leaving behind when entering college,” Gabrielle Hester, a senior immersive media design major and Elkton Hall resident assistant, said.
Hester later said that participating can lead to reflection and mentioned that it is a way for students to come together.
“As a citizen [in College Park], a Terp alum and a staff member here, seeing the power of a community coming together… is beautiful,” Passarella-George said.
To participate, students can either visit ResLife’s Amazon Wishlist to buy gifts and ship them to the provided address – which can be found on the instructions on how to use the Amazon Wishlist – or drop purchased donatable items off at dorm hall service desks. For more information, please visit the Department of Resident Life’s website.
Featured Image: An Oakland Hall donation bin on Dec. 7, 2025. Photo by Anika Stikeleather.