As many families are still doing last minute Christmas shopping, there are others who may not be able to afford to do their shopping. So, many organizations in Hall County are coming together this year to make sure every family has a Christmas.
For 2021, the non-profits that offer Christmas programs in the county joined forces to ask families to complete one application - and then they assigned each family to the agency that could best fill their needs.
Kristi Graham is the Toys for Tots coordinator for Hall County and she says the new method has worked really well. In fact, all of the other agencies have filled their orders for the season. The only organization that still needs help is Toys for Tots.
“We filled quotas for their numbers of what they are able to handle. They are already shut down, so right now we are the only ones still open. People are still applying and still realizing 'maybe I do need help,’" Graham said. "You can still apply through December 19th and we will serve and get those families packages through December 22. So, keep donating! We need your toys!”
So, how many toys does Toys for Tots need? They're serving 1,700 families this Christmas - families with children of all ages. Graham says that, while their average is around 6,000 children, the numbers are higher than normal.
“We of course exceeded that number last year because of COVID," said Graham. "This year, we are exceeding that number as well, because COVID is still very strong. It’s affecting families stronger this year than anything.”
Graham says Toys for Tots will accept just about all kinds of new, unwrapped toys for distribution to needy families. While toys for all ages are needed, she says there is one group that always seems to come up short.
“We are always low on girl toys [for girls] between the ages of 5 and 10,” said Graham. “The toys are smaller and more expensive. The market is very weird for that age bracket, so we don’t get a lot of toys that come in for that group. So, when I do drop boxes off to drop-off sites and businesses that want to help, I always ask them to please give girl toys!”
Toys of Tots also expanded the age range for the kids they are serving. In the past, the age limit was 14, but this year, because one application was used for all the organizations, the age range is now 18, as long as there are younger siblings in the home and the teenager is still in school. Graham says that means there are a lot of different ages with a lot of different needs to meet this year.
Ward's Funeral Home is among the dozens of drop sites for toys in Hall County this year.
Ward's owner John Wayne Abernathy said he and his employees were looking for a way to offer help to children this Christmas season, and Toys for Tots was a good way to offer that help.
"This is another way our family can serve our community [by] partnering with a great organization to bring joy to some child this Christmas," Abernathy said. "After all, we are to be the hands and feet of Jesus."
While toys and money are certainly big needs, Graham says she really needs some helping hands, too. Volunteers are vital to getting the job done.
“We’ve got a crazy week and a half coming up with over 1,000 more bags for families still to fill. We also have over 200 drop sites we need to pick up. And we need toys,” said Graham. “We have a decent amount, but it’s only going to cover one wave. I can only spend so much money that we have in our accounts from donations. But going out to the stores and shopping takes time away from the warehouse and trying to get these families taken care of for Christmas.”
The final day to donate toys is Dec. 19. There are over 200 drop-off sites in the county, or you can donate online. The website is https://gainesville-ga.toysfortots.org. You can also find information online about volunteering in other capacities, as well.
