MBTA Celebrates 24th Annual Fill-A-Bus with Gifts Event

The 24th Annual Fill-A-Bus with Gifts is sponsored by the MBTA and MassDOT with toys provided to the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the Boys and Girls Club of Boston, and Heading Home.

This year, MBTA and MassDOT employees donated 2,651 gifts – the highest-ever toy count for the Fill-A-Bus gift drive, surpassing the previous highest tally in 2023.

Left to Right: MBTA Graphics Manager David Wood, who has organized the Fill-A-Bus with Gifts event for the last seven years; MBTA General Manager and CEO Phillip Eng; and MBTA Bus Operator Mike Broderick, who drives the holiday bus route each year. Complimentary photo by the MBTA Customer and Employee Experience Department.

Last Friday, across the City of Boston, the MBTA and Massachusetts Department of Transportation celebrated their 24th Annual Fill-A-Bus with Gifts holiday drive. MBTA General Manager Phillip Eng and MBTA staff were at the State Transportation Building, and Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt and Registry of Motor Vehicle (RMV) employees were at the Boston RMV at Haymarket.

Boston RMV staff joined Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt with the many gifts donated as part of the Fill-a-Bus with Gifts holiday drive this year. Complimentary photo by the MBTA Customer and Employee Experience Department.

“It is gratifying to have the MBTA, the Registry of Motor Vehicles, and other state agencies offer opportunities to help ensure that every child has a gift this holiday season,” said Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt. “This season, I encourage our employees and all members of the public to make an extra effort to perform a gesture of kindness, express a warm greeting, and take actions that convey a sense of caring toward others.”

“Transportation workers from the MBTA and across MassDOT have shown tremendous generosity for over twenty years by filling a T bus with toys for young people during the holiday season,” said MBTA General Manager and CEO Phillip Eng. “This event is entirely employee-driven and represents the true spirit of what we stand for as public servants – thank you to the many MBTA employees who organize this event every year and who offer gifts that fill our bus. I’m also grateful to our partners at the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, the Boys and Girls Club of Boston, and Heading Home for ensuring these gifts reach families during the holidays.”

MBTA General Manager Eng showcased one of the gifts benefiting the MSPCC, the Boys and Girls Club of Boston, and Heading Home. Complimentary photo by the MBTA Customer and Employee Experience Department.

“The MBTA’s Fill-A-Bus with Gifts event is an opportunity to give something back during the holiday season with the Fill-A-Bus stopping at MBTA garages, RMV locations, MassDOT offices, and other locations each December,” said MBTA Graphics Manager David Wood who has organized the Fill-A-Bus with Gifts event for the last seven years. “Every year, I’m proud to see so many of my Transportation colleagues participate – the kindness offered by so many of our MBTA and MassDOT peers in their gift-giving is a joy that benefits so many during the holidays.”

Left to Right: MBTA Bus Operator Broderick, who drives the holiday bus route each year; Transportation Secretary and CEO Tibbits-Nutt; and MBTA Graphics Manager Wood, who has organized the Fill-A-Bus with Gifts event for the last seven years. Complimentary photo by the MBTA Customer and Employee Experience Department.

This year, MBTA and MassDOT employees donated 2,651 gifts – the highest-ever toy count for the Fill-A-Bus gift drive and surpassing the previous highest record in 2023 – to their Fill-A-Bus partners at the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (MSPCC), the Boys and Girls Club of Boston, and Heading Home.

“In December 2023, MSPCC provided gifts to more than 900 children. For children supported by MSPCC, gifts from the MBTA and MassDOT Fill-A-Bus are more than ‘just toys – these gifts give children in our communities the ability to experience the joy of the holidays as well as a sense of belonging and self-worth,” said MSPCC Director of Development Melanie S. Lima. “Moreover, almost all MSPCC clients live in poverty, and our parents share with us their hopes to provide a joyful holiday for their children, but how finances are a challenge and a cause of stress. By providing families with gifts for their children, MSPCC, with the support of the MBTA Fill-A-Bus, is able to relieve some of that stress that comes with the holiday season, and provide a happy holiday for hundreds of children.”

“Thank you, MBTA and MassDOT, for your continued support and partnership to bring joy, hope, and happiness to the underserved and under-resourced children and families we serve,” said Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston | Yawkey Club of Roxbury Chief Impact Officer Andrea Swain. “Toy donations provided by the MBTA Fill-A-Bus allow us to distribute toys to children ages 6-12 in need who are enrolled in our afterschool program or participate in our community outreach initiatives. Thanks to your generous donations, every member of our club receives at least one new toy. The impact of your donations is immeasurable.”

“The support of the MBTA and MassDOT, via the Fill-a-Bus initiative, has enabled us to bring a little extra holiday cheer to all our families for multiple years and counting now. For our families and kids, it’s so much more than just toys – it’s a way to make shelter feel more like home every holiday season,” said Heading Home Donor Stewardship Manager Calleigh Hynes-Leach. “There’s nothing like the smiles on the kids’ faces when we’re able to drop off car-fulls and car-fulls of toys to our shelters and programs every December. From both our staff and clients, we are so grateful for the generosity of the MBTA and MassDOT and everyone who donates toys!”