Local AmVets Ladies Auxiliary Provides “Toys for Tots”

December 20, 2020
By: Dwayne Page

Members of the local AmVets Ladies Auxiliary have done their part this holiday season to make sure children in the community have a merrier Christmas.

The organization’s annual “Toys for Tots” project was held Saturday at the Midway Community Center where parents and others could pickup toys and clothes for kids in time for gift giving.

“We have been doing Toys for Tots for about 10 years and it’s to serve the community of Smithville and DeKalb County. We know parents have a very hard time sometimes and need help with gifts so we feel the need to give back to the community and to our veterans and their families,” said Crystal Mason, local AmVets Ladies Auxiliary Chaplain.

Funds are raised throughout the year in support of “Toys for Tots” and other community projects.

“We raise our money so at the end of the year we can go out and buy new toys for the kids. We have also had some people bring in new toys and donate to us,” said Mason.

Due to COVID-19, Mason said appointments were scheduled 20 minutes apart for those who had pre-registered to pickup toys.

“Instead of letting the kids and parents come in together because of COVID we scheduled appointments so that we could keep the room clean between visits and keep parents and others safe when they came in to get toys for their child,” said Mason.

A few hours were set aside at the end of the day for people who had not pre-registered to walk-in one at a time and get toys.

Masks were provided for visitors who entered without one along with hand sanitizer.

Savannah Wilkerson, one of the parents who picked up toys, said she appreciates what the Local AmVets Ladies Auxiliary is doing for the community.

“This means a lot to people because many are having a hard time right now especially with COVID-19 and it means a lot to my family too,” she said.

In addition to “Toys for Tots”, the AmVets Ladies Auxiliary sponsors other community projects.

“We also do things for Saint Jude Children’s Hospital. We visit veterans at the VA hospital although we have not been able to this year because of COVID-19. We also support Paws with a Cause, an organization that custom trains assistance dogs for people with disabilities, and we sponsor an annual community Easter Egg hunt at Greenbrook Park,” said Vickey Milligan, 2nd Vice President in the local AmVets Ladies Auxiliary over Child Welfare projects.

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