'Tis the season

Give a toy and a smile to a child at these Dallas holiday toy drives

Santa's helpers at the 2011 WFAA-TV toy drive.
WFAA-TV/Facebook
The Buzz Lightyear action figure is one of the requested items on the CommunityPartners of Dallas toy drive list.
Toysrus.com

Do you remember getting your first Barbie doll or toy truck on Christmas or Hanukkah? Pass along that joy to a less fortunate child by donating to one of these toy drives around Dallas.

Community Partners of Dallas serves abused and neglected children from birth to age 18. Drop off gifts November 30-December 8, 10 am-2:30 pm, at the Peacock Alley Warehouse (2050 Postal Way). Requested items include bikes, Buzz Lightyear action figures, Barbie dolls, LEGO sets, Tonka trucks, African-American dolls, learning toys and MP3 Players. If you don't have time to shop, donations are welcome.

Turtle Creek neighbors Lee Park and Arlington Hall Conservancy, Turtle Creek Association and Belmont Village Senior Living have come together to bring toys and smiles to children at the Texas Scottish Rite Hospital. Donate gifts at the Belmont Village Info Center Monday-Saturday, 9 am-5 pm, and Sunday, noon-5 pm, through December 14.

This year, Young Texans Against Cancer and Urban Taco have joined forces to give toys to patients at the Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders at Children's Medical Center. Drop off donations through December 14 at Urban Taco locations in Uptown and Mockingbird Station. As an added incentive, when you give a toy, you'll receive a complimentary merry berry margarita.

Help WFAA-TV give back to 50,000 children via community agencies throughout North Texas with a Santa's Helpers toy drive. After planning your own toy drive, reach out to the Santa's Helpers coordinator so that your organization is recognized online.

Once your drive is complete, you can drop off the gifts at one of the five official drives throughout Dallas-Fort Worth. If you can't go to any of the drives on the dates listed, you can take the toys to any Chick-fil-A through December 18 or any Tom Thumb and Don Davis Auto Group location through December 16.

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E-Cigarette News

Dallas City Council places restrictions on vaping in public

Unsplash

Man vaping

Vaping will now be banned exactly like smoking, thanks to a new ordinance from the Dallas City Council.

At their December 11 meeting, the council passed an ordinance to ban vaping in all the same areas where smoking is not allowed. It'll go into effect on December 11, 2025 — giving everyone a year to get into compliance.

Proposed by City of Dallas Environmental Commission (EVC) and the Office of Environmental Quality and Sustainability (OEQS), the ordinance amends the definition of “smoking” in the Dallas City Code to include the use of vaping devices.

The ordinance does not ban vaping — it only bans where you can vape: no vaping in all indoor and enclosed spaces; within 15 feet of building entrances; and on park property. The ordinance also bans marijuana smoking in those same places.

In addition, the amendment requires restaurants, hotels, fitness centers and other businesses to update their signage to clearly state that both smoking and electronic smoking devices are prohibited.

The ordinance already earned widespread support from health organizations such as the Dallas County Health and Human Services, the American Lung Association, and the American Heart Association. These organizations, along with the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the U.S. Surgeon General, have all raised concerns about the health risks of direct and second-hand exposure to vaping aerosols, particularly for vulnerable populations such as children and older adults.

Dallas is not the first city to impose such a ban: San Antonio enacted a similar ban in October. Theirs goes into effect on January 1, 2025.

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