Volunteers make Blue Santa festive event

More than 900 kids received Christmas toys Saturday

The mood, festive. The line, long. The music, loud. The lights, flashing. The volunteers, busy.

Such was the culmination of the 2025 Blue Santa Program in Kendall County on Saturday, as hundreds of volunteers made Christmas a bit brighter for 900-plus children and the more than 400 families they belong to.

“These children are going to have the hope and dreams of Christmas.”

— Stacy Husted

Kendall County Sheriff Al Auxier (left) chats with Boerne Police Chief Steve Perez during Saturday’s Blue Santa Program distribution event.

Santa and Mrs. Claus visit two back-seat youngsters during Saturday’s Blue Santa Program toy distribution event at the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office in Boerne.

Star photos by Jeff B. Flinn Vehicles snaked along a path around the Kendall County Sheriff’s Office in Boerne before arriving in front of the building, where volunteers waited, ready to hand them everything from candy canes, firstaid kits, towels and pizza, to the large trash bags that contained the toys and gifts gathered over several months from donors, toy drives and Blue Santa dropoff points.

Blue Santa is a traditional, law-enforcement sponsored program in coordination with local businesses, educators and civic groups to collect toys and other goodies so families can enjoy a merry Christmas.

“It’s been a great night. We’ve had more than enough volunteers, and it’s obviously the season of giving,” said Boerne Police Chief Steve Perez, who stood with Kendall County Sheriff Al Auxier watching the event unfold.

Perez said he wanted to thank all the people who donated toys either through Blue Santa drives, or through the Boerne Independent School District’s Cookies, Cocoa and Toys drive, a large supplier of gifts being handed out.

“This kind of starts around summertime. We start planning on what we’re going to do,” Perez said. “We do an after-action (review), just like we do any other big incident, and say, ‘`What can we do to make it bigger, better, more efficient?’” Sheriff ’s Office Lt. Kevin Klaerner announced the numbers placed on car windshields as they approached the pickup point, the cue for volunteers to bring the appropriate bags to the proper vehicles.

At the head of the line was Chris Dingman, Boerne Police Department community division officer, bringing cars to a halt, so runners could deliver the bags of toys.

Debby Hudson, Precinct 3 justice of the peace, was a “runner” on Saturday grabbing bags of toys from their storage point inside the Sheriff’s Office, carrying them out to the drive, and eventually tossing them into trunks or back seats of waiting vehicles.

“I’ve been doing this for years, helping the Sheriff’s Department,” Hudson said. “I really love helping the community and bringing some joy to some of these children and their parents.”

Stacy Husted, marketing director for Fair Oaks Emergency Room, participated for a second year in the Blue Santa distribution effort.

“This is amazing. It’s overwhelming, the lives that are being touched and changed, and that these children are going to have the hope and dreams of Christmas,” Husted said.

Volunteers Trace and Sophia Abalos, 8-year-old twins, and mother Natasha Abalos returned this year as Blue Santa volunteers.

“We really enjoy it. The kids asked to come back this year,” Natasha Abalos said. “We knew Miss Stacy (Husted, Fair Oaks ER), and she let us help. ... You know, there’s something for everybody, to volunteer here.”

Her twins, she said, “Are already asking, ‘When (is) next year’s drive? Can we do it again?’”