Chris Perez, Selena Quintanilla's Widower, Donates Toys to Salvation Army for Christmas

Lena Hansen
Updated

Chris Perez will make a lot of kids happy this Christmas. The Tejano musician — and widower of late iconic singer Selena Quintanilla — surprised the Salvation Army by donating dozens of toys for children at local shelters.

The artist went on a fun shopping spree at Target on Thursday, donating lots of items, including Quintanilla T-shirts, to a Salvation Army store in San Antonio, TX. “I’m happy that I get to give back in this way. I’m a proud Texas resident and proud San Antonio resident. I fly that flag everywhere I go,” Perez said to KENS5. “I always wanted, especially around the holidays, to give back to the community, and when I was presented with the opportunity to do that, I jumped at it.”

Perez will certainly show up on Santa’s ‘Nice List’ this Christmas. “We appreciate the generosity of Chris. Christmas time can be especially challenging for kids celebrating in a shelter. This really means a lot to us,” Salvation Army representative Brad Mayhar said.

Perez has showed up in the news several times this year, as his wife’s life and legacy was remembered and honored at many high profile events. On Nov. 3, he attended the unveiling of Quintanilla’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Nov. 3, which provoked a controversy over the absence of his last name on her plaque. He was also present when Madame Tussauds Hollywood displayed Quintanilla’s wax figure for the first time in August of last year.

The musician, who has not remarried, continues to share memories of the “Como la Flor” singer on social media. This past April, he post their marriage license on Instagram in celebration of what would have been their 25th wedding anniversary.

Always catches me off guard when I'm walking around a store and things like this shirt "jump" out at me. BIG THANKS to her fans for keeping her memory alive. (You KNOW I had to unfold it and let it be seen, lol!) #Selena

A post shared by Chris Perez (@chrispereznow) on Aug 1, 2017 at 1:26pm PDT

The musician, who released a book titled To Selena, With Love in 2012, has said that he is happy to see his late wife’s legacy live on.

On Aug. 1, he posted a photo of a colorful Selena Quintanilla T-shirt on display at a store with the following message: “Always catches me off guard when I’m walking around a store and things like this shirt jump out at me. BIG THANKS to her fans for keeping her memory alive. (You KNOW I had to unfold it and let it be seen, lol!) #Selena.”