“One day out of the year they can just go back to being a child. Not a homeless child, just a child.”

That is Clarence Adams' Christmas wish and his Christmas gift to the city's homeless children as he and his helpers unload bag after bag of brand new toys.

WWL-TV.com

Clarence Adams picks out gifts from a bag and hands them out to needy children.

“Back in 1998, I was talking with one of the young ladies who worked with the homeless and I said if I had enough money, I'd have a great big party for the kids,” Adams said. “She said let's do it.”

Adams formed the "Forgotten Angels" project, collecting toys and donations and threw one big party every year for homeless children – as many as 500 of them –until Katrina.

Now, the plain-clothed St. Nick is back. Adams and his helpers made 12 stops to shelters, and churches, delivering toys and receiving smiles from more than 250 Forgotten Angels this year.

“It's so wonderful to see the faces on the kids,” Adams said.

Michelle Parker, mom to 1-month-old Tanner, said it warms her heart to know that someone cares.

“We need that,” Parker said. “We don't have much, but people are really nice to give especially this time of year and that's good.”

Adams credits the community and not himself for the love and the joy he's able to spread.

This year, despite a tough economy, residents donated thousands of toys and thousands of dollars to help make Christmas wishes come true.

“I got an envelope the other day with shaky handwriting, probably a little old lady, no return address, with a $20 bill and a note that said God bless you, buy a toy,” Adams said. “That's just worth everything in the world to me. It's what Christmas is all about.”

As long as he gets the same reaction, his Christmas wish will always be fulfilled.

“Nola is the city that care forgot, but it's not the city that forgot to care,” Adams said.

He said next year he will have the support he needs to go back to throwing a Christmas party, just like he did before Katrina.

Susan Edwards can be reached at sedwards@wwltv.com