3rd grade South Philly teacher playing Santa for school

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- When a South Philly teacher found out that a yearly toy drive for their students would be missing their school this year, she decided to step up and play Santa.

Courtney Minto is a 3rd grade teacher who is trying to pull off a Christmas miracle.

Southwark School goes from pre-K to 8th grade.

There are about 1,000 kids at the school. Right now, they have about 600 gifts.

Minto is in the home stretch, working to make sure every single student has something to open for the holidays.

"One thing that many of our students may never experience is walking in a Target or walking into Walmart and being told you can pick out whatever you want," Minto explains. "When we do give them all the gifts, we're going to give them that excitement and that freedom to see what there is and allow them to choose something of their liking."

Southwark is a Title 1 school, and Minto says many of their students and families rely on the various supports and resources that they provide.

When the community found out about her toy drive, they started opening their hearts and wallets.

"These boxes are coming in because people really care," says Natalie McHugh, the Assistant Principal at Southwark School.

"They want to make sure the holidays are special for everybody. I think it's like the best feeling in the whole world. I love coming into my office every morning and seeing those toys, because I know a lot of kids are going to be very happy next week.

Southwark School is hoping to set up that toy shop, where every student can come and choose their own special holiday gift, on the last day of classes before the break.

That's next Friday, December 20th.

They're hoping to secure the donations by Tuesday, December 17th.

Click here to view their Amazon Wish List.