SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The saying goes, "It takes a village to raise a child." And, Mirna Madrigal, the plant manager, overseeing facilities at Isador Cohen Elementary School, knows that better than anyone.
"These kids here are the future, and when you see them, they can tell when you're sick, when you're sad, when you're happy. They can help you get through anything," said Madrigal in Spanish.
For the second year in a row, she and her entire family purchased about 320 toys to give to each student at the La Rivera neighborhood school.
Kayla Lopez, a mother of a kindergartner in the Special Education program, said the surprise is an unforgettable one.
"For a lot of kids, school is their safe spot, so sometimes that's their only meal and their only love or happiness they receive. So receiving an extra toy is very special. I know a lot of those kids did not expect coming to school to get that," said Lopez.
Madrigal and her husband Jose Ayala said it was their dream to be able to do this for the kids.
They struggled themselves back in the early 2000s to raise seven children with very limited funds, barely being able to give their kids gifts with the help of their community.
"We came here as immigrants. We didn't speak any English. We didn't have a job. All of a sudden, everything changed. We got our documents. We started working. I was a volunteer for the Sacramento City Unified School District for 10 years," said Madrigal in Spanish.
Madrigal now credits the school district for allowing her to fulfill her goal of becoming the plant manager at Isador Cohen Elementary School, and with the help of her husband, she's giving back.
"Some of the staff did not know that she had purchased all the gifts, and some of them found out this year. And there was just tears, because they could not believe that she had done all of that out of her heart, not for show," said Belinda Bridgewater, principal at Isador Cohen Elementary School.
"We want to thank the principal, the school that gave us the opportunity to make this dream come true. And God willing, because we never know what's going to happen tomorrow, we'll do it again next year," added Jose.
The family said it cost about $2,500 to make their dream reality. The principal also provided about 20 toys herself, and they plan to do it again next year as well.
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