Underneath his red suit, Santa Claus on Dec. 10 will be wearing the green and gold of Grossmont College.

On that evening, the EOPS Department will host its 13th annual ASGC/EOPS and CARE holiday party for special Grossmont students and their children at the Student Center from 5-7p.m.

The party guests are enrolled in the Cooperative Agencies Resources for Education (CARE) program for full-time students who are single heads of households. They have re-entered college to learn marketable skills to become self-sufficient and financially independent.

At the invitation of EOPS, faculty and staff have been making donations of gifts and money through the Marine Corps’ popular “Toys for Tots” program. Chief party organizer is Pat Murray of EOPS, a longtime advocate of the project. Diane Do of AOJ is orchestrating a special program in which children at the party will receive “identification kits” created by an AOJ fingerprinting class. Michael Perez is the expert bicycle locator.

An ASGC grant of $2,000 is funding much of the party, including an Italian dinner for guest families. And the ASGC extends the campus “food drive” to the EOPS/CARE families. Food that is donated is packaged and given to the participating families.