Jingle all the way: The Giving Plate’s Jingle Store is here for youngsters and families to enjoy

(Update: Adding video, comments by Giving Plate, young shoppers)

BEND Ore. (KTVZ) -- The Giving Plate's annual Jingle Store opened Friday morning. Over the next two days, over 800 children are receiving $10 in 'Jingle Bucks' to shop for gifts, and plenty more opportunities to have fun as well.

“I got this for my little cousin, Hadley," Valerie said. "And she's 5 years old, and she really likes dolls, so I thought I would get her a Barbie for Christmas."

At the Jingle Store, children shop for themselves and others, to spread holiday cheer. About $50,000 worth of gifts are being given away.

The Giving Plate moved The Jingle Store to the Riverhouse Convention Center three years ago and is welcoming nearly 900 kids this year. There are over a dozen sponsors and more than 250 volunteers who have helped create the holiday spirit for children.

In 2010, Debra Kelso and her family opened up The Giving Plate, and every Christmas, they gave out toys to children in need. Kelso says, “In all the support, with all the different lands and all the toys, it's just all about the community supporting. And so that's why it is what it is today."

One Christmas, a boy went up to Kelso wanting to get a present for his mom, and that’s when the jingle store was born.

"I said, 'Take this home and wrap it up,' and give it to him. He was so excited. But I thought about him all day and it just made me realize, 'Why don't we do something different?'"

The families enter the wonderland at Fairytale Castle Lane. From there, they get to meet Buddy the Elf! When a child receives a "Golden Ticket," they get to pick from a special variety of toys, including a bike!

After seeing Buddy you get to meet Elsa and Anna from Frozen, then Darth Vader and Princess Leah. The North Pole is next -- and you know who lives there. And right before the Jingle Store, there is a Candy Cane Candy Store, and then of course, the final destination, the Jingle Store

Each child gets 10 Jingle Bucks, which they can spend on themselves and others. It amounts to about $50, and the gifts are priced at only 20% of what they'd normally cost.

Jingle Plate Executive Director Ranae Staley said, “We really want to empower kids to be part of that circle of giving and experience what Christmas is about. It's not just about receiving. It is about giving.”