Wrestling fans headed to the El Paso County Coliseum this December will have a chance to do more than watch body slams — they can drop off a toy for a local kid in need. TNA Wrestling is teaming up again with Operation H.O.P.E., the El Paso-based nonprofit, for a holiday toy drive tied to the promotion's live events at the Coliseum on December 18 and 19, 2026.
Starting November 16, donations can be dropped off at five local business locations, according to KVIA. Those sites include two Oscar Leeser Hyundai dealerships in El Paso, Cesar Ornelas Injury Law on Gateway East, Jessica Morales Allstate in Santa Teresa, New Mexico, and Sun City Athletic Club on Borderland Road, according to PWInsider. Collected toys will then be presented to Operation H.O.P.E. on December 20 inside the Coliseum's VIP Room, extending the drive's reach into both El Paso and southern New Mexico. Tickets for the December 18-19 shows are on sale now, with proceeds supporting the charitable efforts tied to the events.
A Legacy Carried Forward
Angel Gomez, who co-founded the nonprofit, died in 2024 at age 70. His daughter, Rubi Gomez, has since stepped into leadership to carry on his community service work. Her parents grew up in El Paso's low-income Segundo Barrio neighborhood.
The partnership between TNA and Operation H.O.P.E. is not new. During TNA's previous multi-day event in El Paso this past December, a similar toy drive collected hundreds of new toys that were formally presented to the charity by former TNA World Champion Mike Santana, per a report from 93.1 KISS FM. That 2025 drive was intended to benefit children across the region, with collected toys going directly to families facing hardship.
Beyond the Ring, Beyond the Holidays
TNA's involvement with Operation H.O.P.E. has stretched past the toy drive itself. In November 2025, TNA performers Frankie Kazarian and Leon Slater joined Operation H.O.P.E. volunteers at the Coliseum's Pavilion to help with the nonprofit's 30th annual Thanksgiving food distribution, which aimed to serve over 1,000 families in need, according to KVIA. That same December run of shows also featured photo-op activations with wrestlers dressed as “The Elegant Elves.”
The need such efforts address is significant. According to U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey data compiled by USAFacts, roughly 18.7% of El Paso County residents — about 160,600 people — live below the federal poverty line, well above the national average of 12.5%. That gap helps explain why holiday toy and food drives remain a critical resource for thousands of local families each winter.
A Venue With Deep Roots
The El Paso County Coliseum itself carries history that predates the wrestling promotion by decades. Originally built in 1942 as a rodeo arena, the venue is part of El Paso's history. TNA returned to the Coliseum for its December 2025 events.
In July 2026, the El Paso Police Department held a Community Fest at Cloud Park with backpack and school-supply giveaways for students.
As TNA prepares to roll back into the Coliseum this December, the toy drive stands as one more chapter in a partnership that has quietly grown from a single charity gesture into a recurring fixture of the promotion's visits to the Borderland — one that, for Rubi Gomez, keeps her father's mission alive one donated toy at a time.
