Watch the full report from WTVR CBS 6 Photojournalist Will Hicks in the video player above.
CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — The Lego Group's “Build to Give" initiative made a stop at the Manchester Family YMCA to spread some holiday joy on Saturday.
Neighbors were invited to bring children to build with LEGO bricks to create a unique heart design. Those creations were then used to decorate holiday trees, which were gifted to the YMCA.
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Ben Edlavitch, who grew up in the Tuckahoe and competed on “LEGO Masters” with his grandfather, Poppy, was on hand to help the kiddos .
"You can kind of build a story around certain pieces. So if you find fun leaf pieces, you can build like a bonsai tree heart," he said. " There are no expectations. Anything you can do, you can apply, like a playful attitude."
Officials with the YMCA said the activity is more than just fun for children.
"How often do you see where there isn't a phone in somebody's hand?" the official said. "The Y is about supporting the development of children. So we're thinking about physical, mental, social, emotional learning. There's a whole lot of peer conflict resolution."
The official said play often leads to "spark some sort of curiosity or some sort of excitement. "
“Nothing is permanent," Edlavitch said. "Everything can be taken apart and reconfigured into ways that improve people's lives and that improve people's communities.”
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