The child then hands him a piece of paper and says, “if you are him, here’s my list.” The soldier breaks his position, gently reaching out to take the note…

The heart melting advertisement supports the Marine Corp Toys for Tots program, which for almost 80 years has been playing Santa Claus by delivering more than 652 million gifts to about 291 million children across the United States.

The Toys for Tots event was started in 1947 by Marine reservist Major Bill Hendricks and his wife Diane, who handcrafted toys and asked her husband to deliver them to an agency that helps children in need.

CONTINUE READING ON THE NEXT PAGE