Jon Johnson File Photo/Gila Herald: Toys for Tots coordinator Greg St. Hilaire poses with a pile of toys in a warehouse. St. Hilaire invites the community to enroll in the Toys for Tots program to help everyone have a Merry Christmas. Sign-ups take place throughout November at the Victory Fellowship Theater/The Way Safford, 555 Entertainment Ave.
John Johnson
john johnson news@gmail.com
GRAHAM COUNTY – Another year without ghouls and goblins.
Returning to his 15th year at the helm, Greg St. Hillier is the official coordinator of the Toys for Tots charity in Graham County, where he hopes to fill warehouses and give away toys this Christmas, the program’s 75th anniversary. But St. Hilaire needs the help of all the little elves everywhere to know who to prepare the gifts for.
To do this, simply sign up to receive toys from the program at the Victory Fellowship Theater/The Way Safford at 555 Entertainment Ave. throughout November. Sign up at the coffee shop during business hours from 1pm to 7pm, any day of the week.
Documents required for child registration include parent or guardian photo identification, DES decision letter, proof of residency or guardianship, child’s birth certificate, and child’s Social Security card. The age limit for receiving gifts is 16 years old. For more information, call Greg at (928) 792-3100 or email Toys4totsgraham@gmail.com.
The Toys for Tots program began in 1947 when Diane, wife of Major Bill Hendricks, made a handmade Raggedy Ann-type doll and asked her husband to donate it to a worthy organization. After failing to find such an agency, Diane suggested Bill start her own agency. That year, Hendrix and his Marine Conservation Corps collected approximately 5,000 toys and distributed them to underprivileged children in Los Angeles, creating the Toys for Tots program. Since then, the program has grown, giving more than 18 million of her toys to more than 7 million of her children last year alone. Additionally, when the pandemic hit, the program distributed over 2 million of her toys and books to the children most affected by the virus.
Last year, the Toys for Tots program distributed approximately 19,482 gifts to 6,411 children in Graham County, with each child receiving at least three gifts. Gifts are tailored to each child from a questionnaire that parents or guardians complete when the child signs up. St. Hilaire said he believes he is guided by God in leading the program. Because I constantly hear from his parents that the toys he gives his children are exactly what they wanted.
St. Hilaire became the local coordinator in 2007 and has improved the program each year, even in difficult economic times. In 2010, the Toys for Tots Foundation recognized him as Region IV Civilian Coordinator of the Year.
With the support of a local Pepsi factory and the use of Solomon’s storage facilities, the St. Hilaire facility has become a warehouse capable of receiving large quantities of toys from national organizations and subdividing pallets of toys to other coordinators throughout Arizona. . New Mexico.
The Toys for Tots program is the highest rated charity, with approximately 97% of donations used to provide toys, books and other gifts for children, and approximately 3% for administrative and fundraising costs. Only % is used. Last year’s campaign reached 832 communities in all her 50 states of Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands, distributing an unprecedented 22.4 million of her toys to her 8.7 million children.
Locally, St. Hilaire said 100% of donations are used to provide toys for children. He also pays for the gasoline to travel to different counties to collect and distribute toys, collection boxes and bottles. In St. Hilaire, we buy toys year-round for maximum profit, but drop off about 100 toys to stores in Graham and Greenlee counties His box and his 100 donation Many companies help by allowing the jars to be placed. So put a new, unwrapped tow in the donation box, or he put $1 in the donation jar and feel confident that it’s going the way it was intended.
