The U.S. Marine Corps is charging into the electronic frontier, taking its 51-year-old Toys for Tots Christmas gift-giving program for underprivileged children online.

Donors can go to the Toys for Tots site through Dec. 21, choose from a large selection of new toys and pay online.

Marine Corps volunteers will then deliver the toys to local social welfare agencies and churches around the country, which in turn distribute the toys to needy children on Christmas Day.

The Toys for Tots program is supported by online retailer eToys.com and Visa USA.

The selected toys are discounted 50 percent from the regular retail price for people using their Visa card on the eToys site.

Since 1947, the Toys for Tots program has distributed more than 232 million toys to 116 million needy children in the U.S.

The Marine Toys for Tots Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization that runs the program for the Corps. The foundation reported a 95:5 program-to-support expenditures ratio last year.