'There are great people out there': Stranger helps Santa get toys to boy after wish list went missing

A Christmas surprise arrived for a Long Island boy -- thanks to some help from a kind-hearted stranger.

News 12 Staff

Dec 27, 2020, 10:01 PM

Updated 1,382 days ago

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A Christmas surprise arrived for a Long Island boy -- thanks to some help from a kind-hearted stranger.
An unexpected package showed up on the doorstep of 4-year old Andrew Tagarelli in Amityville. Inside were some toys on his Christmas list to Santa.
The list was supposed to be mailed - but his family says they lost it before getting to the post office.
There were two notes inside the package - one from Santa to Andrew, and another to his parents signed “Rob Q,” explaining that he found the note and wanted to fulfill Andrew’s request for Christmas.
The boy's mother - who says she lost her job during the pandemic - says it made their holiday a whole lot brighter.
“It really just brought greater spirits to us just to know that there are great people out there still," says Melissa Tagarelli. "It reminded us that it's still very important to have a great sense of community and take care of one another.” 
Tagarelli says she’s still hoping to find out who sent them the package to thank him. In the meantime, she says she will pay the gesture forward by making a donation to St. Jude in his name.