Donate Toys and Get Mushrooms or DMT in Return

Oakland really knows how to celebrate the holidays. PLUS, mushroom tinctures, deprioritization vs. legalization, and how to find the right ketamine clinic.

Author

Mary Carreón // Editor-in-Chief
22 Dec

 

TOGETHER WITH

Happy Solstice Morning, and welcome to another edition of The Drop In! We're kicking things off with a story about a toy drive that’s unlike the other toy drives this holiday season. Maybe you saw it on the news?

The Church of Ambrosia and rapper Mistah F.A.B. are hosting the most psychedelic toy drive in Oakland today and tomorrow. When you donate a toy, you get your choice of mushrooms, cannabis, or DMT in return. YES, you read that correctly. Read the story immediately below!

If you keep scrolling, you’ll find other pieces on why the political logic of psilocybin mushroom prohibition is falling apart, how to choose the right ketamine clinic for you, and what the difference is between decriminalization and deprioritization.

We hope you have a restful break this holiday season 💙

Mary Carreón
Editor-in-Chief

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This Toy Drive Is Giving Psychedelics to Everyone Who Donates

An Oakland toy drive is getting creative this holiday season, trading donated toys for psychedelic sacraments.

Only in Oakland could a toy drive involve psilocybin mushrooms, cannabis, and DMT pens, and somehow feel wholesome and completely logical.

Through December 23, the Church of Ambrosia — a large, non-denominational religious organization based in Oakland and formerly in San Francisco, which considers cannabis and psychedelic mushrooms to be divine sacraments — is teaming up with Oakland rapper and community fixture Mistah F.A.B. for his 21st annual Toys for Joy giveaway. The collaboration is easily the most psychedelic offering of the holiday season: Donate new, unwrapped toys, and Church members will receive an equal-value gift of entheogenic sacraments of your choice, including psilocybin mushrooms, cannabis, or DMT.

This grassroots partnership couldn’t come at a better time. Many families are reportedly stretched thin this holiday season. According to The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, the vast majority of U.S. adults are noticing higher-than-usual prices for groceries, electricity, and holiday gifts in 2025. “Roughly half of Americans say it’s harder than usual to afford the things they want to give as holiday gifts, and similar numbers are delaying big purchases or cutting back on nonessential purchases more than they would normally [at this time of year],” the AP reports. Understanding that inflation and community support systems are under pressure, this campaign leans into creativity — and admittedly a little humor — to keep a long-running holiday tradition alive.

“We participated in [the toy drive] last year, but we didn’t really put it out there,” Dave Hodges, the founder and head pastor of Church of Ambrosia, told DoubleBlind. “This time around, he told me fundraising was getting harder because people are tight on cash, so we figured this was a creative way to try to bring in more toys.”

Here’s how it works: Bring unwrapped toys to Zide Door, show them your receipts, and they’ll give you equal value in entheogenic sacraments. “There’s no cap on how [many toys] you can give,” Dave said, “and we’re waiving the [church] membership fee for anyone who joins by donating. It’s our way of making generosity feel accessible, and honestly, kind of joyful.”

Zide Door’s “Shrooms for Toys” campaign runs in the lead-up to the Dec. 23 giveaway, with donation bins also placed at Mistah F.A.B.’s Dope Era clothing store and his nightclub, Dezi’s Lounge. The goal is simple: Get toys into kids’ hands before Christmas morning.

“We have to be real about how hard things have been lately,” said Mistah F.A.B. in a press release. “Families are doing everything they can just to get by. Toys for Joy is about showing up for the neighborhood and making sure kids still get to feel that holiday magic.”

Last month, Mistah F.A.B. facilitated a DOPE ERA turkey giveaway in which volunteers distributed 800 turkeys, drawing lines that wrapped around the block. “We’re expecting another huge turnout for the toy giveaway,” said Dave. “Last year, at least 200 people came through. We’re expecting the same, if not more, this year, and we're just doing everything we can to give back.”

The Toys for Joy giveaway takes place Dec. 23, starting at 12 pm near 45th and Market streets in Oakland, and will continue until supplies run out. Hot meals will also be provided.

Trading toys for psilocybin mushrooms, DMT, and cannabis is deeply Oakland. Not because it’s a demonstration of how strong the city’s grassroots culture is, but also because it’s an example of the people flexing their rights under psychedelic deprioritization, a measure that the city council unanimously passed in 2019. The policy removed psychedelics from the Oakland Police Department’s list of enforcement priorities and is widely understood to function, in practice, as de facto citywide decriminalization.

Who knew even slightly reformed drug laws could bring so much benefit to a community during the holidays?

Apparently, Oakland did.

& More Must-Reads

  • Mushrooms have been illegal for nearly 50 years, but the political logic that put them there is falling apart. Read our story about why here.

  • Decriminalization and legalization get used interchangeably, but when it comes to drugs, they mean very different things with very different consequences. Read more about how they are different here.

  • A scrappy theater troupe turned intentional community has spent decades quietly running a global experiment in art, ecology, and audacious do it yourself adventure, from the Amazon to Kathmandu. Read more about this wild group here.

  • Mushroom tinctures have been used as medicine for thousands of years, and this guide breaks down how they work, why they are back, and how to use them wisely. Read more here.

  • Ketamine therapy and psychedelic retreats are easier to find than ever, but knowing how to spot a reputable clinic or guide makes all the difference. Read more here.

DoubleBlind Digs

  • On Tuesday, January 6, artist and writer Julia Edelman is hosting an art and journaling workshop at Recess Grove designed to help participants set intentions for the year ahead and translate them into visual form. Through guided journaling prompts, attendees will move from reflection into creation using acrylics or watercolors, with all supplies and journals provided. Learn more here.

  • The Indigenous Journalists Association is seeking program proposals for its Indigenous Media Conference held on July 22-24 in Portland, Oregon. Share and send in your proposals here.

  • DoubleBlind just published its first book—and DoubleBlind+ members get a free copy of The DoubleBlind Guide to Psychedelics, a beautifully designed, safety-forward handbook covering substances, dosage, contraindications, and what to expect. Read more.

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A gift they’ll still be using years from now.

Around the Web

  • Psychedelics may help people with depression and anxiety, but new research suggests the simple behavioral tests used in mice may be too blunt to explain how these drugs actually work. Read more.

  • Bill Gates says his early experiments with LSD, marijuana, and alcohol were encouraged by Microsoft cofounder Paul Allen, a formative influence he now views with a mix of curiosity, caution, and hindsight. Read more.

  • A new study suggests that a single moderate dose of psilocybin can briefly ease OCD symptoms, with the strongest effects seen in compulsive behaviors rather than intrusive thoughts. Read more.

  • A large new study finds that while most people report no lasting problems after using psychedelics, those with histories of adverse childhood experiences are significantly more likely to experience anxiety, identity disruption, or social disconnection that can persist beyond the trip. Read the study here.

  • Playwright and Emily in Paris actor Jeremy O Harris was released in Okinawa on December 8—three weeks after his November 16 arrest at Naha airport over the alleged discovery of 0.78 grams of MDMA in his carry-on—while Japanese prosecutors continue investigating and he remains in the country. Read more here.

  • The Etheridge Foundation has awarded a $20,000 grant to the NPA Foundation to support its effort to reschedule psilocybin under federal law and expand access to research and therapeutic use. Read more.

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