HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The person recognized to generations of Houstonians as “Pancho Claus” says he is awaiting surgical procedure after struggling a coronary heart assault.
Richard Reyes advised ABC13 that he went to the hospital after experiencing chest pains on Thursday.
“They advised me immediately, this was a coronary heart assault,” Reyes mentioned from his hospital mattress Saturday night. “That is my third coronary heart assault.”
Pancho Claus is understood for passing out toys to underprivileged youngsters at Christmas, most notably in Houston’s East Finish.
The 73-year-old mentioned the custom’s footprint has grown because it enters its forty fourth season.
“We give out 20,000 presents every year,” Reyes mentioned. “We do it in Houston, however we additionally do it in a number of little cities within the Rio Grande Valley.”
Reyes mentioned he is assured this yr’s giveaways will happen, although he mentioned issues like manpower will likely be wanted to ensure that that to occur.
“The best factor is to go to my Pancho Claus Fb and depart a message,” he mentioned. “We want places to place bins, folks to select up the bins, and we’d like folks to wrap toy bins and reward bins.”
Reyes mentioned getting COVID-19 proper earlier than Christmas in 2020 taught him a invaluable lesson about getting sick this time of yr.
“I’ve a number of religion in my neighborhood,” Reyes mentioned. “I really want my neighborhood to step up and to understand Richard Reyes is just not Poncho Claus. They’re.”
Reyes mentioned he is scheduled to endure surgical procedure on Monday.
For information updates, observe Chaz Miller on Fb, X and Instagram.
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