Suffolk County Police Team Up With Nursery To Donate Christmas Trees To 10 Needy Families

BROOKHAVEN, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Christmas came early for some Long Island families with the help of Suffolk County's finest.

The parents of 6-year-old Alaythea Nix tried to keep up Tuesday as the youngster excitedly inspected the Christmas trees growing inside the Hall Enterprises nursery in East Patchogue.

"We're trying to pick a tree for Christmas," she said.

Nix's joy came thanks to some Suffolk County officers in blue. The officers raised money to deliver Christmas trees along with all the necessary decorations to 10 needy families.

"We managed to get ornaments, and lights, and tree stands and it grew into getting Santa Claus. And Santa's coming here, and he said, 'hey I don't come empty handed,'" Suffolk County Police Inspector William Silva said.

Nix's eyes lit up as she hugged Santa. Then, the first-grader eagerly watched as nursery workers cut down her chosen tree.

The nursery generously donated the fully grown trees, and it was clear that both the nursery workers and the Fifth Precinct officers enjoyed it all as much as the families did.

"Just to see the faces when it's like you know, 'which one you want? OK let's chop it,' and giving them the whole experience of chopping their own tree down," Charlie Hall, of Hall Enterprises, said.

"The smiles that you get from the family, it definitely makes the holiday season what it's supposed to be," Silva said.

As officers loaded Nix's tree into her family's car, she couldn't wait to get home and decorate it.

Santa also handed out gifts for the children and the families to place under their new trees.