2016 Season of Giving

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Your 2016-17 Indiana Pacers would like to wish a Happy Holiday to you and your loved ones. Be sure to watch the video above for a special holiday message from this year's team. Thanks for all your support and we hope to see you all at Bankers Life Fieldhouse soon!

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Happy Holidays From Your Indiana Pacers

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The Indiana Pacers hosted their annual Shop with the Pacers event, presented by Simon Malls, on Sunday afternoon at Greenwood Park Mall. The event, part of Pacers Cares and the NBA Cares Season of Giving campaign, provided children and families from Hands of Hope Adoption & Orphan Ministry with a shopping spree and pizza party.

Each of the 30 children in attendance received a $200 gift card from Simon Malls to spend in any store. Finish Line also provided a 25 percent discount, and the families received tickets to a future Pacers game, a Pacers gift bag, and Kroger gift cards.

Pacers players Al Jefferson, Georges Niang, Glenn Robinson III, Rodney Stuckey, Joe Young, and Thaddeus Young each joined a group of kids to help them pick out what they wanted. One member of the Indiana Pacemates and two Pacers Sports & Entertainment employees joined each group as well.

GALLERY: Shop with the Pacers Brings Smiles »

The players loved the opportunity to be a part of a special holiday memory for those children, and to show a different side of themselves off the court.

"I've got a lot of kid in me," Pacers center Al Jefferson said. "I was very surprised how smart they are when it comes to picking out stuff, because they wanted to go get shoes and clothes. I would want to go right to the toy section."

There definitely were some toys purchased during the outing, and some kids couldn't wait to get them out of the box and start playing with them as they ate pizza after shopping.

Robinson III and Joe Young each participated in the event last year and enjoyed taking part for the second year in a row.

"Coming out here today, again, is just an honor, to come out here and put a smile on their faces," Young said. "[And] having a smile on my face coming out here to do it. I'll do it any day, any year."

"It's a lot of fun," Robinson III said. "You get a lot of kids who really appreciate what we're doing for the community. To be able to give back to them and see them shop [is fun]."

Jefferson, in his first season with the Pacers, has enjoyed getting to know — and getting involved with — the Indiana community.

"It really doesn't surprise me, because this is a basketball state," Jefferson said of the franchise's close connection to the community. "It's a first-class organization, so they do everything the right way."

Community events like this carry a little extra weight for Robinson III, a native of Gary, Indiana.

"Me being an Indiana guy, giving back not just to a community, but my community, it means so much," Robinson III said.

Robinson III also pointed out what these events do for the team as a whole.

"It makes this team better. It just unites us," he said. "It makes us stronger as a team, having six players come here to give back and help out, we love to do that...We have a lot of great guys on the team."

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Shop with the Pacers Brightens Holiday Season for Local Children

Wheat Hotchkiss

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2016 Holiday Toy Giveaway (Muncie)

On Friday afternoon at Heekin Park in Muncie, 30 children from local day cares had a chance to celebrate Christmas a few days early. Thanks to the kindness of JAKKS Pacific Inc. Chairman and CEO Stephen Berman and his good friend, Pacers Sports & Entertainment owner Herb Simon, children just like them all across the state of Indiana have experienced the joy of the holiday season.

Friday's visit to Muncie was the fifth event in the past two weeks where the Indiana Pacers and Indiana Fever joined with local police departments as part of a state-wide distribution of toys from JAKKS Pacific (a leading U.S. toy and consumer products manufacturer based in Santa Monica, California, that designs, develops, and markets consumer products for children and pets) to 50 non-profit organizations in celebration of the Pacers' 50th season.

Previous stops included Terre Haute, Bloomington, Fort Wayne (in partnership with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, the Pacers' D-League affiliate), and Lafayette. A sixth scheduled event in Evansville was cancelled due to inclement weather, but those toys will still be distributed to local organizations.

PHOTO GALLERIES: Terre Haute »   Bloomington »   Fort Wayne »   Lafayette »   Muncie »

This is the seventh consecutive year that Berman has made a major donation of toys to Indiana children. Just as in past years, the Pacers and Fever have partnered with the Indiana National Guard to help distribute the toys to local agencies.

A large assortment of guests was in attendance on Friday in Muncie, including representatives from Pacers Sports & Entertainment, the Muncie police department, and the Muncie mayor's office.

Pacers great Darnell Hillman, Pacers mascot Boomer, Fever mascot Freddy Fever, members of the Indiana Pacemates dance team, and even Santa Claus himself were on hand to help the children unwrap their presents.

"It's pretty easy to tell with all the people that are here today that the Pacers organization loves the state of Indiana and they love the children and families in the state of Indiana," Muncie mayor Dennis Tyler said. "That's really what it's all about this time of year, people coming together to make sure everybody has a blessed holiday."

Each event has been merely a tip-off for a much larger distribution of toys to organizations throughout each local community.

"This is benefiting so many more kids than just the few who are here today," Muncie Police Chief Joseph Winkle said. "We're passing presents out in our squad cars, we're going to the pediatric unit at the hospital next week, it's impacting far more."

The holiday toy giveaway is part of the PacersCares and the Pacers' "Season of Giving", which included other holiday events such as: Pacers "Come To Our House" Thanksgiving Meal presented by Rodney Stuckey and US Foods, "Shop With The Pacers" presented by Simon Malls, volunteers packing over 100,000 meals for Gleaners Food Bank courtesy of the RoomPlace, and blanket-making at Bankers Life Fieldhouse for the American Red Cross.

The toy giveaway will culminate on Monday, Dec. 19, when the Pacers host the Washington Wizards at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. There, Berman, Simon, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver and members of both teams will join in the final toy distribution during pregame and in-game festivities.

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Holiday Toy Giveaway Bringing Smiles to Children Across the State

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2016 Holiday Toy Giveaway (Lafayette)

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2016 Holiday Toy Giveaway (Fort Wayne)

It can be difficult at this time of year to satisfy all the needs of those who may be unable to provide their families with a traditional Christmas celebration.

Pacers forward/center Lavoy Allen and his wife, Deloris, did their part Sunday afternoon, as they gave out over a hundred gifts to the women and children of the Coburn Place Safe Haven.

Coburn Place houses victims of domestic violence along with the many children who are often caught in the middle of conflict.

The Allens were joined by their three sons, and were especially proud to teach their oldest son, four-year-old Kai, a lesson in giving back.

"I really wanted him to actually have that physical contact, to be able to give to another child and see their reaction to it," Deloris Allen said.

"It's very important," Lavoy said. "It's one of the things I want to [teach] my boys to do when they grow up, to give back to the community no matter what it is, no matter how little it is."

The Allens worked with Coburn Place officials to determine what each child wanted, and they thoroughly enjoyed playing the role of Santa Claus for these families.

"[The gifts] are very special and specific to the child," Deloris said. "I'm really excited to see their reactions to it."

Gift baskets were raffled off to the mothers; prizes included yoga and spa passes and restaurant gift cards.

Juanika Ellis, Monta Ellis' wife, donated several gift cards and attended the event as well.

"It feels great. I'm always down for giving back," Lavoy said. "This one is a little bit different. Not many people think of events like this for this type of place, so I think it's great that my wife planned this whole thing."