CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A Coastal Bend mother is keeping her son's memory alive through acts of kindness.
Christine Martinez started a toy drive happening throughout the month called 'Christmas in July'.
They are collecting unwrapped toys that will be distributed throughout the community. The movement is named after Cristian Rodriguez who took his life when he was just 14 years old.
His mother, Christine Martinez describes Cristian as a happy kid, full of life and had a passion for basketball. She said events like Christmas in July are a way to give back to the community while also bringing awareness to the difficult topic of suicide.
"Also we use it as a way to bring awareness and communicate with the community, engage with them, and share our Cris' Hope wristband that has a message 'Your story matters' because we all have a story and we all mater. Our hope cards have words of encouragement," she said.
Martinez said the goal is to keep those words in mind and use them as part of your toolbox to get through those hard days. The organization Cris' Hope will be collecting toys throughout the rest of the month and will have a drop-off event next Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at IMBOC Income Texas & Accounting off Everhart Road.
Another drop-off location will include the Windsor Nursing & Rehabilitation Center of Morgan.
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