TOKYO -- About 1,700 volunteers dressed as Santa Claus went around towns delivering presents to about 4,700 children across Japan on the evening of Dec. 24, in the hopes of bringing Christmas joy to children in households pressured by the coronavirus pandemic.

       The gift-giving, organized by Tokyo-based nonprofit organization Charity Santa, covered 30 prefectures across Japan from northernmost Hokkaido to southernmost Okinawa, with the volunteer Saint Nicks going door-to-door to give picture books, children's books and other gifts to kids.

       Kotori Okabe, 21, a university student from Tokyo's Kita Ward who volunteered in the drive, said, "I, too, have had sad experiences like the entrance ceremony (of my college) being canceled because of the pandemic. I'd like to bring, if even just for a moment, smiles to the faces of children who've had a hard time."

       (Japanese original by Yuki Miyatake, Photo Group)

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