Michael Beasley and Eric Williams made their way carefully downthe table full of toys at the Brookhaven Outreach Ministries,trying to decide which ones they wanted to take home forChristmas.

The two small boys looked at a toy motorcycle, a helicopter, afootball, weighing their options carefully before making a finaldecision. Meanwhile, Sandra Nelson pondered which riding toy totake home to her grandchildren.

It was all a part of the yearly holiday givings, the day thatfamilies who have fallen on hard times can come find Christmas whenthere might have been nothing.

“It went exceptionally well, we were able to help with toys andeverything,” said Outreach Ministries founder the Rev. Jerry Durr.”We served 125 families with toys and food.”

Durr said Faith Presbyterian Church also donated giftcertificates for hams, and Durr said 32 were given away Tuesday.There are still 17 to go out on Wednesday, he said.

Meanwhile, he said, there were smiles to go around as well.

“We got some real good feedback, I did little videos and theywere really enthusiastic and glad for the help,” Durr said. “A lotof the people would have gone without and while some of them wereworking, most of them weren’t. We had a lot of single-parenthouseholds, and a lot of senior citizens.”

Durr said Tuesday was a special day for him, because it’s alwaysbeen his aim to help people. He said ever since he grew up in hisgrandfather’s home, he had hoped to make Christmas a special timefor others.

“I always said when I was a child coming up … Grandaddy didn’tmake too much, and had three grandkids he was raising,” he said.”We always struggled, but always had plenty of some items, and somewe didn’t have. I decided then that I want to spend my life helpingpeople, want to provide service and ministry to people.”

And God answered that prayer, he said.

While Outreach Ministries workers will have a few days off,they’re back to work Monday, Durr said.

“We’ve got to come back and get our warehouses back in order, doour year end reports, and get everything back into line,” he said.”We’ve got to get back to helping people on a daily basis.”