Pandemic takes toll as Toys for Tots starts 2020 campaign

Today marks the official kick-off for the Toys for Tots 2020 holiday campaign.

Now until Christmas, U.S. Marines and 35, 000 volunteers will be conducting 810 toy collection and distribution campaigns in all 50 states for an estimated 15 million children living in poverty.  The mission of Marine Toys for Tots is to bring the joy of Christmas to less fortunate children with the goal of delivering a message of hope that will inspire youngsters to grow into responsible, productive, patriotic citizens.  

The coronavirus pandemic shuttered countless businesses, forced families to remain isolated in their homes, and resulted in millions of families finding themselves out of work – without income – and in dire need of support.  Not wanting to wait for the holidays, this past spring, Toys for Tots partnered with Good360 who helped us distribute two million toys, games, and books to families-in-need in the spring and early summer.

It had a large inventory of new toys, games, and books that had been donated to it by the organization partners.  Normally, this inventory would be distributed to children-in-need during the upcoming holiday season, but given the current crisis, the organization decided to distribute these toys with the help of Good360 to communities throughout the U.S. to families with children in need during the pandemic. 

The Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program collects and distributes an average of 18 million toys to 7 million less fortunate children each year during the holiday season, during November and December, through an active and robust distribution network in over 800 communities in all 50 states.  Outside of the holidays, however, Toys for Tots does not have its distribution network available – as Marines are busy training, deploying to serve.

Toys, books, and games offer many benefits during this extraordinary time of need.  They help to fight boredom, relieve anxiety in children, facilitate a return to normalcy, and can even contribute to the educational development of our nation’s children, especially while they are out of school. 

But the early distribution came at a price as the two million toys were to be used to augment local toy collection and distribution drives for the upcoming holiday season.   

To compound an already 2-million toy deficit, the organization anticipates local toy collections will be negatively impacted during the holiday season due to the pandemic producing far fewer donated toys.  Toys for Tots also anticipates a significant increase in families with children seeking assistance from Toys for Tots. 

Toys for Tots is now working diligently with help from its supporters to “refill Santa’s bag of toys” to be able to answer the request of all families with children seeking our support during the holiday period.  Help Toys for Tots fulfill the Christmas Holiday dreams of millions of less fortunate children who otherwise may be forgotten, after all – every child deserves a little Christmas.

Toys for Tots, a 73-year national charitable program run by the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, provides happiness and hope to less fortunate children during each Christmas holiday season.  The toys, books, and other gifts collected and distributed by the Marines offer these children recognition, confidence, and a positive memory for a lifetime.