A Hoosick Falls boy has collected tens of thousands of letters to Santa. He dropped them in a mailbox inside the Macy's at Colonie Center on Friday.

He was brought to the shopping center in a school bus watched in awe as letters were unloaded by the box load, and then rolled into the department store.

Luke Hoag, 11, collected the letters to raise money for Make-a-Wish. As an infant, he was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. At age three, Make-a-Wish sent him to Disney World.

“That trip to Disney made a mark on me, so I wanted to give back to Make-a-Wish for the great opportunity they gave me,” Hoag said.

For each letter, Macy’s will donate $1. For letters delivered Friday, National Believe Day, Macy’s pledged to double their contributions.

“That translates into $154,000 donated by Macy’s to Make-a-Wish,” said Bill Trigg, ceo of Make-A-Wish Northeast New York. 

Hoag is sending a message that sometimes the most powerful gift is showing you care.