Shortly after The Salvation Army announced it had run out of toys for “Toy Town” yesterday, the donations started. More than 24 hours later, they have yet to stop.
All day and night, a steady line of cars were lined around the block full of action figures, sports equipment, stuffed animals, and more, all from generous community members who heard The Salvation Army’s call for help.
“We couldn’t even move around inside the building there were so many toys,” said Social Services Director Kim Beck. “We were able to provide toys for every child who came through our doors today.”
Yesterday, the first walk-in day for “Toy Town,” The Salvation Army experienced an overwhelming surge of need. More than 300 families – almost four times the turnout of previous years – braved the cold to participate, depleting the Army’s reserve of toys.
Beck estimated more than 5,000 toys were donated today.
“We were expecting an even larger turnout today, and that’s exactly what we saw,” Beck said. “We were able to serve 337 families, each of them averaging 3-4 children. And we had so many left over, we were able to help others, too.”
Because of the community’s support, The Salvation Army was able to provide 300 toys to the West End Neighborhood Council; 25 toys to Preferred Family Health Care; and 50 to the King of Kings Church in Berkley.
“I’m still floored by the generosity of our community,” Beck said. “To those of you who answered our call for help, we love you more than words can say and couldn’t have done this without you. Staff members were crying because we were so touched by your generosity. Thank you for believing in what we do.”
