Blog
Some of the accolades from toy donation recipients.
(Click Here) Second Chance Toys - Cover Note
(Click Here) Second Chance Toys - Family Letters
Thanks for all you do to help make a difference!!
Each year, thousands of needy children depend on the love and generosity of their neighbors to help make the holiday a happy one. Many larger, well funded organizations reach out to the community, ask for donations and are able to offer food, clothing, gifts and toys to needy families. Pleas of many smaller organizations are never heard. This year, according to Jocelyn Goldberg, founder of the New York City Chapter of Second Chance Toys, "Many smaller charities that don’t have the resources or manpower to ask for help were able to come to our website and connect with toy drives going on throughout New York City. Drives held at organizations like Rapid Park Garages -- located throughout Manhattan –were able to collect and donate over 2,400 toys to organizations that otherwise would never have been able to connect with them.
This year toys were donated to groups that include:
- Association to Benefit Children
- East Harlem Community Center
- New Creation Christian Church
- Mother-Child Crisis Center (Covenant House)
- Dads United for Parenting (Midtown Community Court)
- Brooklyn Family Defense Project
- St John’s Place Family Shelter
- Toys of Hope
- Save the Children of NY
- NY Kids Foundation
- Bethel Gospel Assembly
1-800-GotJunk? donated time and services to transport the toys to each of these organizations.
This year, toys collected by Temple Shaaray Tefila’s Hebrew School program in New York City were donated to the Prospect Family Inn and the Williamsbridge Family Inn – two local centers operated by Homes for the Homeless. More than 200 children will receive a toy as a result of the drive, helping make this December’s holidays extra special. Children enrolled in the daycare programs were given the opportunity to select their toy from under the tree, which was a special event for the centers last Monday afternoon. These centers serve 512 families and more than 600 children every day. According to Margaret Menghini, Program Associate at Homes for the Homeless, toys and play time are extremely important to the positive development of young children. This type of contribution, plus others from community organizations, help us provide our residents with the various items they need to get by on a day-to-day basis. We are truly grateful for our partnership with Second Chance Toys and for the creative way they are recycling plastic toys and help less privileged children in the communityâ€.
Children from the Harmony House Early Learning Center in Newark are seen here with Drew Trautman, franchise partner with 1-1800-Got-Junk?, who made the Dec. 15th toy delivery to the pre-school on behalf of Second Chance Toys. The center is owned and operated by the non-profit New Community Corporation.
Second Chance Toys of PA salutes the team at 1-800-GOT-JUNK? for their great help in moving toys from where we collect them to where they need to go to get them to the kids. We could not make so many children happy without your desire and effort to help whenever, however and no matter what! THANK YOU! You epitomize what community service and the holiday service are really all about!
There was lots of holiday cheer in the air at Our Lady of Hope Church on December 23. The kids of Logan Annex Head Start received lots of shiny gifts compliments of Second Chance Toys of PA, and had personal “sit-downs†with Santa Claus too!!! That is what we call a very special day indeed!
Thanks to the generosity and support of so many individuals, families, schools, churches, synagogues and companies this holiday season, Second Chance Toys of PA toy donations now exceed 12, 500. That is a lot of toys recycled away from the landfill to into the appreciative hands of literally thousands of youngsters in our community. Thanks to the following organizations who lent a helping hand or otherwise participated this holiday season:
-Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church
-Springfield Elementary School
-Springfield Literacy Center
-Walter Miller Elementary School
-Samuel Everitt Elementary School
-Kohls
-Bucks County Head Start
-Mill Creek Elementary School
-Pediatric Day Health Center
-Feltonville Head Start
-Trinidad Head Start
-Logan Annex Head Start (Our Lady of Hope Church)
-Downingtown Area School District (Admin Team)
-Tiferit Bet Israel Synagogue
-Warwick Elementary School
-State Farm
-Children’s Village of Doylestown, PA
If you are interested in participating during Earth Week 2011, please let us know at secondchancetoys.pa@gmail.com
Hey, it’s not really “work†when you are having fun! Here is the Second Chance Toys of PA core team and some volunteers helping Santa make it happen for the kids during the holiday season of 2010!
Second Chance Toys of PA donated hundreds of great toys to the children of Feltonville Head Start this holiday season. The toys were distributed to the kids on December 21. Smiling faces all around. Happy holidays! Ho Ho Ho!
What a great time on December 22. The kids dressed up and performed in true holiday style for friends and family. Second Chance Toys provided wonderful toys for every single child just in time for the holidays. And -- Santa even made a surprise appearance too! A tremendous time was had by all!
The numbers from NY, PA, and IL are still coming in. Looks like a new milestone in the making.
Choka Lyme For Hope conducted a toy drive with Second Chance Toys which was a great success. The abundance of collected toys were delivered to Babyland In Newark, New Jersey. Bobby Roghubir spoke on behalf of Choca Lyme "It was our pleasure to be apart of this program and the recipients are a great organization who were very welcoming and appreciative of our efforts. We look forward to working with Second Chance Toys on future toy drives."
Don't mess with those kids and families from Mill Creek Elementary School in Warrington, PA. They know how to organize a toy drive! Do they ever! They filled our 15 x 15 cubic yard 1-800-GOT-JUNK? truck up to the gills with gently used plastic toys; great toys to be recycled and distributed to literally hundreds and hundreds of kids in our community just in time for the holidays. That is community and holiday spirit at its best. Thanks to Principal Leonard Schwartz, Home & School leader, Stephanie McDonald and all the great students who helped make the December 3-10 toy drive such a resounding success for the second year in a row. Some say "Ho Ho Ho" at this time of the year! We simply say "Wow, you are the greatest!!
Second Chance Toys of PA wants to publicly thank and congratulate the wonderful children at Springfield Elementary School and Springfield Literacy Center who worked so hard to collect toys for us during their drive from November 3-12. You did a great job and your efforts will help some very deserving children in Delaware County and beyond. Your efforts are what the holiday spirit is all about. Let's keep that spirit throughout the year. Help the kids -- Help the Environment! Way to go!!!
Talk about a team effort. Led by Girl Scout Troop 21808, the students, families and Parent-Teachers-Organization of Warwick Elementary School in Warwick, PA orchestrated a very successful toy drive and collection in support of Second Chance Toys of PA from November 22 to December 1, 2010. All banned together to help many needy children in the Bucks County and surrounding areas hopefully enjoy the holidays a little bit more this year. Many boxes and bags were filled with reusable plastic toys collected by the Girls Scouts at the school. This is the first year the scouts have coordinated with Second Chance Toys and we are very proud of them for their truly outstanding efforts. They are helping to make a positive difference in the lives of other children and our environment!
The great kids and families of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Doylestown, PA organized another successful toy collection on November 20, 2010 in support of Second Chance Toys of PA. Once again, our 1800GOTJUNK truck was filled with quality, polished-up toys that will make hundreds of deserving children in our community very happy this holiday season. This is the third year in a row that Mount Carmel has supported Second Chance Toys of PA activities. We are not only impressed by this consistent effort, but very grateful indeed! Thanks to all who pitched in. Special thanks to Laurie Frayne who coordinates these activities at the church and to Eric Blum from 1800GOTJUNK who helps us get the toys where they need to go.
