‘Tis the season to be charitable, according to many University of Massachusetts student organizations and members of the Amherst community.

As winter break approaches and some people chop down their Christmas trees and string lights, several members of the UMass community have chosen to donate their time to help the less fortunate.

Veteran Services at UMass will be collecting brand new and unwrapped toys for children by participating in Toys for Tots – an annual toy drive put on by the United States Marine Corps Reserve.

“It feels good to know that you can provide a child with a simple toy and that might be the only thing that child gets for Christmas,” said Judy Gagnon, the coordinator of Veteran Services. “It’s part of the holiday season.”

The Marines will pick up the toys and distribute them to needy children in the western Massachusetts area once the toy drive is over, Gagnon said.

This year, Gagnon advertised the toy drive throughout campus via flyers and email. The Veterans Society currently has a bin for toy donations – outside of its office in the Whitmore Administrative Building – and will be accepting until Dec. 13.  Gagnon encourages students to participate, saying, “it is always fun to go toy shopping.”

Also getting in the charitable holiday spirit this season is the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority – the bus line that services much of the greater Amherst and Pioneer Valley area

According to the PVTA website, PVTA and UMass Transit – which specifically services the UMass campus – participated in the Stuff the Bus Food Drive, collecting non-perishable food on all buses and at the bus terminals from Monday, Nov. 28, through yesterday.

Proceeds from the food drive collected on the PVTA lines will be given to the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, while donations collected specifically on UMass Transit buses will be made to the Amherst Survival Center.