A heart-warming scene as celebrities help Christmas come early for children in South Los Angeles

With Christmas music blaring through the speakers of the stadium’s sound system, an army of 500 elementary-age students from ten schools across Los Angeles, lined up to have Demi Lovato help them select a new winter jacket inside an open-air shop seemingly borrowed from the North Pole’s set designer.

With Christmas music blaring through the speakers of the stadium’s sound system, an army of 500 elementary-age students from ten schools across Los Angeles, lined up to have Demi Lovato help them select a new winter jacket inside an open-air shop seemingly borrowed from the North Pole’s set designer. This isn’t a Hallmark movie. It’s an event that’s the handiwork of Baby2Baby, a nonprofit that in its 13 years of existence has become as known for its efforts for children living in poverty as it has for its ability to mobilize a far-reaching celebrity network. On Tuesday, one of LA’s typical 70-degree December days, the children’s journey upon arrival to BMO Stadium in South Los Angeles began on mound of incongruous snow for sledding before they were ushered inside for clothes shopping, a visit to a toy shop, where Kendrick Lamar was among the famous faces providing customer service, and a chance to shoot penalty kicks with pro soccer players. The first, second and third graders who shuffled through the stadium in squiggly attempts at straight lines didn’t seem to be aware that they were talking to celebrated entertainers, which almost made the sweet scene even sweeter. Events like this one are what has kept musician Kelly Rowland, a mom of two boys and a former member of Destiny’s Child, working with the organization for ten years. “Baby2Baby will put you to work and that’s the best part,” said Rowland, who began collaborating with the nonprofit when she was pregnant with her first son. “You can’t talk about it; you have to be about it.”