Dozens of Colorado Springs preschoolers got into the holiday giving spirit on Thursday by donating hundreds of canned goods to a local nonprofit as part of an annual nationwide campaign.

Three local Primrose preschools participated in the Caring and Giving Food Drive, a national community service effort aimed at helping underserved communities.

Primprose preschoolers and pre-kindergartners, ranging in age from three to five years, have taken part in the food drive for years, according to Abigail Day, owner of Primrose School of North Colorado Springs.

“The donations have gone on for years — long before my husband and I came to this school,” said Day, who assumed leadership in 2023.

Last year, Primrose schools across Colorado Springs donated over 1,233 food items as part of the drive, officials said. Kids from the northern location on Briar Ridge Point, near Briargate Parkway and Chapel Hills Drive, donated nearly 500 food items this year, as well as dozens of “gently used” coats, Day said.

“We asked kids and their parents to consider donating coats that they may have outgrown,” said Day, whose two sons attend Primrose. “They outgrow clothes pretty quickly at that age.”

In addition to teaching baseline academics like reading and writing, Primrose teachers also focus on character development, Day said. During “circle time” and small group instruction — particularly in the weeks leading up to the holidays— they discuss “generosity and what it looks like,” Day said.

“Kids — even as young as the ones we have here — are sponges for information,” she said. “They’re able to understand that some kids go hungry, that they need food, and that we can help them.”

For this year’s drive, Primrose is partnering with One Nation Walking Together, a Colorado Springs-based nonprofit that delivers up to $2 million in donated goods to Native American reservations in Colorado and seven surrounding states.

“Anything that you use in your daily life, the reservations need in a big way,” said Laura Chickering of One Nation.

“There are children sleeping on dirt floors, they’re hauling water, they have no electricity. Their conditions are stark. We know we’re just a Band-Aid – they need so much more than what we bring them — but it’s important work, and we love doing it.”

After the One Nation van pulled up to the school, the children lined up and began carrying the donated item out, walking in an orderly, single-file fashion. But it didn’t take long for the excitement to get the better of them, and they started dashing back and forth between the building and the van, smiling and laughing.

“This is a highlight of my December,” Chickering said. “The smiles on their faces, and they’re so joyful and enthusiastic and happy to give. I love seeing children, at such a young age, learning the importance of giving back.”

Day stood back and observed, clearly proud of her young charges.

“I’m so proud that they understood the message of what Caring and Giving means,” she said. “It’s nice to see the innocence in the children’s hearts. They’re so excited to use what we’ve taught them.”

The Briargate location is one of three Primrose preschools in Colorado Springs, all of which are participating in the Caring and Giving food drive, officials said.