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​Toy donation, including the 250,000th toy donated, at Babyland Family Services, Inc. in Newark, NJ

Who would have ever thought that when Sasha Lipton began collecting toys back in 2006, and donated them to Babyland Family Services in Newark, that 10 years later Babyland would receive the 250,000th toy donated by Second Chance Toys!!

It started as a labor of love in 2006, when Sasha noticed all the colorful good-as-new plastic toys being tossed at the curb in her neighborhood. She not only wanted to help kids who were less fortunate, but realized the unnecessary waste headed for our landfills.

It was not easy getting the first organization to accept toys from a cold call by a high school student. Thank you Babyland Family Services for accepting our very first donation, recognizing the need we were fulfilling and giving us the conviction that this idea could take hold.

On this milestone donation of our 250,000th toy, a special thank you goes out to our amazing volunteers holding collections everywhere, and to 1-800- GOT-JUNK? that has volunteered time, trucks and manpower to pick up and deliver all of our large collections. Thank you for believing enough in our mission to give of your time to move us forward and help us grow.

Remaining toys being unloaded from the 1-800-GOT-JUNK? truck 

This year we were happy to add Bright Beginnings Queens Village to our list of volunteers that collected toys for us....and they did a wonderful job!! Second Chance Toys matched them up with the National Association of University Women, who were distributing all kinds of goods to four different shelters in Queens including Acacia Network in Corona Shelter, LaGuardia Family Center, Camba The Landing, and Kings Inn. Thanks to Bright Beginnings, NAUW was able to include these beautiful good-as-new toys for the young children at the shelters and brighten the holidays. A great effort by all!!!

Dentist Dr. Mariana Blagoev, in Parlin, NJ, is organizing a toy drive this holiday season that will surely put smiles on the faces of some deserving children in her community. In an effort to give back to the community, Blagoev is sponsoring a toy drive to make a difference in a child’s life during the holiday season. 

Blagoev is encouraging the public to drop off new, unwrapped or lightly used toys at her office, Bright Smiles Dental, 1145 Bordentown Ave. in Parlin, NJ. Toy drop-off dates are now through Wednesday, Dec. 21, during office hours. All of the collected toys will be donated to Second Chance Toys. 

“In a troubled economy that affects many Americans, the spirit of giving to others is needed more than ever,” Blagoev said in a news release. Individuals that participate in the toy drive will receive a free dental check-up, complete with an exam and X-rays. This way, locals get to help the needy while improving their own dental health. Blagoev is passionate about improving the lives of those in her community. She has also mobilized the community through charitable activities in the past, including food drives and other events.

Toys were collected and donated from PS6 students, family and friends grades PreK-5 in Staten Island. They collected race tracks, robots, dolls, action figures, dinosaurs, carriages, puzzles, plastic blocks, musical instruments, and play sets. Everyone had fun with the collection which was organized by PS 6 teacher, Eileen Loughran. These colorful toys were donated to the Jewish Renaissance Foundation for their breakfast with Santa toy giveaway in Perth Amboy. Thank you PS 6 for a job well done!!

Last month, I had the honor of co-leading my daughter’s Daisies troop as they earned two badges – the Clove “Use Resources Wisely” badge and the Rosie “Make the World a Better Place” badge. In planning for the event, my co-leader and I agreed that we wanted the girls to have a hands-on experience with these themes; not just hear about them, but actually experience them. So, we set up a tour at a local nature center. But still, we wanted more for the girls to actively experience in terms of using resources wisely and making the world a better place. That’s where Second Chance Toys (SCT) came into play (pun intended). By asking each of our Daisies to donate one or more of their lightly used plastic toys to a child in need, we married the themes of the Rosie and Clove badges. 

The Daisies were not only willing, but also excited to share their toys. In fact, one girl who forgot to bring her toy insisted that she bring it to my house the next day. They were determined to help re-use their toys and bring joy to children less fortunate. That sure sounds like wise resource management and making the world a better place to me! 

I encourage other Daisies and the broader Girl Scout community to follow our lead. A Second Chance Toys collection is an easy add-on to your next troop meeting. Or perhaps you want to go bigger and plan an event around the December holidays or around Earth Day, engaging your local schools and other community organizations. Regardless, it’s a worthwhile undertaking. If you’re not sure you have the time or you’re wondering how to get started, please see tips from my previous blog: 

http://www.secondchancetoys.org/blog/its-time-year-holiday-collections-a...

and from other SCT collectors:
http://www.secondchancetoys.org/blog/school-back-and-soon-collections-wi...

P.S. Apparently, this works for the Eagle Scouts too! http://www.secondchancetoys.org/blog/qa-about-eagle-scout-project-phil-s...

-Sherry Marin Altman, SCT Volunteer

People are inspired to volunteer and work with Second Chance Toys for a variety of reasons. Today we hear from one of our Board Members, Leslie Leventman, on what makes working with children in need so important to her:

As the holidays approach, with all the beautiful imagery and sounds of the season, I reach back to my childhood memories.  I have indelible memories of the lessons that my mother taught me. She always said that “giving is its own reward.” 
 
My mother was such a kind and caring individual. She was a product of the Great Depression and a member of the World War II Generation, who used ration coupons for food. My mother often spoke to me about those very difficult years and what it was like living in poverty. It was a painful reflection for her -- even in her early 90's. Fortunately, she had a very loving and close knit family, and together they weathered those extremely difficult years.
 
Despite her family hardships, my mother always knew how fortunate she was to have a doll and a pair of roller-skates as a child, and to experience the joy that these toys brought to her life. These two toys gave her childhood meaning, expression, creativity and room to dream. In fact, she might have missed out on all of those joyful times without them. However, she never forgot the meaning of those toys her entire life. This, I believe, ultimately led her to pursue a career in social service. As an adult, my mother became a social worker helping people in need. During the holidays my mother and her co-workers made baskets for the less fortunate, and delivered them to the neediest families. The focus of our holidays, as a family, was always to help those in need, and to “give back” to the best of your ability.   
 
This is why the mission of Second Chance Toys resonates so deeply with me, and why I am a member of its Board. The mission of Second Chance Toys is to help a child in need feel important and cared for, by providing toys that will allow them to be children. To dream, to play, and be in the moment of learning and wonder! Toys are so critical to a child's development. By giving a toy to a child, you are providing that child unbridled joy, a learning tool, and sweet memories-- all in one. And this is a blessing which will surely last a lifetime. 
 
My mother, Gladys Leventman, passed away this past March, at the age of 92. I will always honor and cherish her memory by remembering the needs of children who are less fortunate, by putting a smile on their faces with a joyful holiday toy.
 
Best wishes to all for a wonderful holiday season!

In our last Toy Tales story we hear again from Elva Guevara, the Executive Director of United Yes We Can- Unidos Si Se Puede.

This Toy Tale is about a young girl named Luz, a special needs child, who received a musical princess table from Second Chance Toys. Upon receiving the toy, Luz had tears running down her face and said that it was the “biggest and prettiest gift” she ever received. This was a very special moment for her that day, and the table continues to have special meaning. Several weeks later, her mother, Onesima, expressed her own joy to me personally. When Luz has an anxiety attack, her mom discovered that her daughter starts to calm down when seated at her princess table and she begins to play. This toy has truly been a blessing for them both.

Toys are more important than meets the eye. We are so grateful for Second Chance Toys and look forward to their generosity this holiday season as well.

Part two in a new series from Second Chance Toys on the impact that donated toys have on the children who recieve them

Welcome our series of articles and shared stories that follow what happens to your toys after you drop them off. In each story, we'll share how a toy donation has directly and positively impacted the life of a child. We share these just as our holiday toy donations begin, with the hope that these stories provide some inspiration for giving and also a greater appreciation for the importance of toys.

As Jinnea turned the key and pushed the door open, she could still smell the new paint on the wall. It made her smile and remember just how far she had come. Her new apartment was in the same neighborhood she grew up in, yet it was worlds apart from the poverty she had once lived in. It was also a five minute walk from the Head Start Homeless Shelter she and her two sons once called home. 

Like her two boys, Zyon and Amari, Jinnea had grown up in a broken home herself. But she was lucky enough to have two very loving grandparents who helped her get off the welfare system and find a job. She started in a low paying entry level position and was quickly promoted to administrative assistant working with adults with intellectual and physical disabilities.  Jinnea is now working towards a degree in human services with a concentration in counseling – and she plans to graduate in May. She is so proud to have pulled herself up by her bootstraps to raise her boys in a better environment.

Gateway Community Head Start nurtured Jinnea’s kids while she was getting her feet on the ground. Zyon and Amari, went through the education and enrichment programs for preschoolers – and Jinnea is certain it gave the boys the positive start they needed -especially for her youngest, who is developmentally delayed. Jinnea can remember one particular breakthrough day for Armari. It was the day Second Chance Toys delivered gently used plastic toys to the children at Head Start; Amari received a plastic train from SCT. And through various play exercises with his new train, Amari’s teacher was able to pull him out of his shell and help him advance his speech and socialization. Jinnea and his educators still marvel at the fact that a plastic train held the key to unlock her son’s development. Helping kids and the environment… one toy at a time.

Hooray for Halloween! The holiday of sweet treats, spooky tricks, and costumes sparked by the imagination—no wonder it’s a favorite for all ages to enjoy! As you and your children prepare for the festivities, use this holiday for more than just collecting candy. Halloween is a great opportunity to discuss the importance of recycling, and then put it into action with these fun craft projects that transform old objects and materials (like, all those candy wrappers) into new creative treasures. Ahead, we share four recycling-based art projects that celebrate the Halloween spirit, promote skill building, and celebrate upcycling.

1.) Black & Orange Recycled-Materials Collage

This project is an effective, simple way to introduce your child to recycling. Start by encouraging your little one to save odds and ends that are typically discarded, including bottle caps, paper towel rolls, juice boxes, candy wrappers, and so much more. These open-ended materials are ideal for imaginative play, as they can be transformed and defined by the child’s imagination.

Once your child has a plentiful collection of recycled materials, invite him or her to make a collage by gluing them to a piece of cardboard or canvas. As they create from the unknown, this form of “process art” helps children develop a range of important skills, such as innovation, planning, problem solving, and fine motor development.

When their sculptural collage is complete, let it dry for at least 24 hours. Once the glue has set, your child can paint over the top of their 3-d collage using orange and black paint to create a festive, monochrome collage with a Halloween twist.

Materials needed: recycled materials, canvas or cardboard, paint, paintbrushes

2.) Toilet Paper Roll Characters and Literacy Adventures

Never throw out your toilet paper rolls again! Believe it or not, toilet paper rolls are the perfect recycled material for countless craft projects, and this one promotes storytelling and literacy skills! This Halloween, turn your old cardboard rolls into fun characters or animals, then start narrating new adventures with your little one.

Get started by reading a Halloween-themed book with your children. Ask them about the character details that they notice. Create a list of those features together. When the story is complete, encourage kiddo to decorate their cardboard tubes to bring their own characters to life. Whether you reenact the story you just read or create a new plot from scratch, your child’s cardboard characters pave the way for practicing their reading, writing, and narrative skills.

Materials needed: toilet paper rolls, recycled materials, markers, paint, confetti (optional), googly eyes (optional) 

3). Candy Wrapper Origami:

If your home looks anything like mine after Halloween night, your floor is covered in candy wrappers! Instead of tossing them, use all those colorful wrappers to practice origami, the art of paper folding! This engaging, focused activity helps children hone their fine motor ability and practice perseverance. Check out this list of fun shapes and figures that your child can create using nothing more than their hands and upcycled wrappers. Happy folding!

Materials needed: candy wrappers (or found papers) in various patterns and colors.  

4.) Cardboard haunted house

Cardboard boxes are one of my favorite open-ended materials for imaginative play. They allow children to create their own space in which they can enact their pretend worlds. Maybe a cardboard box is a space shuttle flying to the moon, a castle with a dragon inside, or a corner café with the best milkshakes in town.

This Halloween, invite your child to make their own haunted house! First, collect a large cardboard box (ideally large enough for your child to climb inside). Then set up a station of open-ended materials to inspire their imagination: markers, paints, stickers, recycled odds and ends (caps, plastic bottles, aluminum foil), pipe-cleaners, buttons—go for it! Assist your youngster (or help guide an older child) to cut out a door and windows using a box cutter. As they work, support their imaginative process by offering open-ended questions. These prompts invite more than “yes” and “no” responses. Try these: “What do you think you might see if you went inside a haunted house,” or “Imagine what it might feel like to live in a haunted house.” Open-ended comments help children create a narrative for their play experience. They also allow them to maintain control over their own creative process, which supports intrinsic motivation and independence.

Materials needed: cardboard box, cardboard scraps (for roof/details), box cutter, variety of open-ended materials for decorating.

Thanks to Rose & Rex Founder, Allison Klein, for writing this article and for her creative ideas. Her online toy boutique and play resource is a partner with Second Chance Toys. They are full of great ideas!!