Derrick "Santa" Coleman

He did not come down a chimney. Or even wear red. But Derrick Coleman was certainly playing the part of Santa Claus on Tuesday, Dec. 16 when he treated 25 kids from the Children’s Crisis Treatment Center to a shopping spree at the King of Prussia Toys R Us.

The kids who arrived shortly before 7 a.m., were given a spending limit and then set loose in the store. Whether they were in shock or just had their wits about them, surprisingly, there was no mad rush through the door. But the boys headed right for the electronics and the girls to the Barbie section.

“There’s one little girl in here who strolled through the store, had a Toys R Us lady pushing the cart for her and saying, ‘I’ll take that and I’ll take that,’” Coleman observed. “But all the guys, ran right to the game section - Play Stations, X-Box games. I mean, they went right to the game station. Overall, it’s been great.”

Coleman strolled the store with the kids, helping them pick out toys. While other 76ers players chipped in financially to make this holiday season a special one for the kids, Amal McCaskill, Willie Green, Kyle Korver and Zendon Hamilton showed up at the store to help the kids. Like big kids themselves, they even tooled around the aisles on scooters. Hip-Hop was there too, riding in a shopping cart - but no one took him home.

Almost all of the kids were shopping not just for themselves, but also for their brothers and sisters. So it was not unusual to see a Barbie item sneaking out from under a Game Boy Advance or remote controlled cars.

“It gives an opportunity for the kids to come out who don’t get a lot of things for Christmas,” Coleman said.

The Children’s Crisis Treatment Center (CcTC) is a private not-for profit agency that provides therapeutic services to help children who have been affected by physical and sexual abuse, severe neglect, abandonment, violence and trauma. CcTC services are executed by a staff of highly qualified professionals, both at our facilities and in the community.

After an hour of shopping it was time to get back on the bus to go to school. Everything just barely fit, including the beaming smiles of all the kids.