WEISER, Idaho — For almost 40 years the Ho Ho Express has been spreading holiday cheer across the western Treasure Valley. It truly is a community effort led by the community comic himself.
- Ho Ho Express is ready for another Christmas.
- Community comic Joe Malay says Santa asked for help with toys.
- Hundreds of children get $50 to spend on anything they want.
(Below is the transcript from the broadcast story)
The concept is simple, the Ho Ho Express takes hundreds of children to area stores and gives them 50 dollars to spend on anything they want for anybody they want.
Organizer Joe Malay was at the Annex school outside of Weiser to ask the kids if they were ready, "Does everybody know what they're going to buy? Who's going to get something for somebody else? That's a good answer."
I asked Joe Malay how he got hooked up with Santa, "I've been a personal friend of Santa's and helped him out as an elf for 53 years. Somebody said Santa needed a friend with a gift of gab and all of a sudden it came up Santa heard how Joe Malay talks and his voice sounded like him, he thought 'you can be an elf and help Santa out'."
The kids climb into buses and with a police escort, they travel to either the Walmart in Ontario or the Bi-Mart in Weiser and go to town picking and choosing gifts — their choice.
"Santa insists they take this money, and they spend it on whatever they want. They want 50 dollars of peanut butter and snacks it's their money and they are chosen because they don't have the money and that's a good feeling for them."
Back at a warehouse in Ontario a team of volunteers not only helps the Ho Ho Express but gathers food and toys as part of a larger community outreach program. Steve Dominquez from Hometown Motors handed Joe Malay a check for the Express. "This year, we are pleased to give Joe Malay and the Ho Ho Express a check for $13,000, that's unbelievable."
A work crew from the Snake River Correctional Institution was busy helping fill boxes of food and toys as part of a larger community outreach program. I asked a crew member why he's helping.
"Now I'm giving back, it's great to give back, it's my first year, but a lot of guys have been doing this through the years."
And with Christmas so close it's taking a large neighborhood working together to get the work done.
