“All the donations are terrific, but the monetary donations let us get especially stuff for those older kids between 13 and 17,” Brunsman said.
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Monetary donations are especially helpful, he added. Toy Team 9 helps each year by providing a wide variety of toys for children of all ages, Brunsman said. “Anyone who’s scheduled for a food appointment for our food pantry in December with minor children are eligible to come in and shop for two toys and a board game for each one of those children from age 0 to 17 in their households.” “Instead of having to redo the whole physical layout of our building and asking customers to navigate between two floors, we’ve really tried to eliminate any and all barriers we can to make it as easy as possible,” he said. Jay Warren | WCPO Toys at Be Concerned's Christmas Store. The organization did private fundraising, he said, to make up for the lost revenue.īe Concerned also moved the Christmas Shop upstairs to the same level as the organization’s food pantry, which Brunsman said has made it easier for parents and grandparents to shop at a time they also are coming by for food.
#Army of two toys free
Last year, when the financial fallout from the pandemic hit so many families so hard, Brunsman said Be Concerned decided to make the shopping free for families. In years past, for example, parents and grandparents paid a small fee per child to shop at The Christmas Store.
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It’s one of many adaptations that Be Concerned has made because of the pandemic, Brunsman said, and they’re not all bad. People also can donate toys to the charities in person on either Friday, Dec. This year community members can make monetary donations at where money can be earmarked for a specific charity or given to the overall Toy Team 9 campaign. This marks the 11 th year that WCPO 9 has teamed up with Kroger for the toy drive, which usually culminates in toy collections at nine area Kroger stores.īecause of the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic, though, the toy drive looks different for the second year in a row.
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We’ll see how it works.”īe Concerned is one of nine Greater Cincinnati charities that make the holidays happier for kids in need with the help of Toy Team 9. “We are approaching, hopefully, 700 children in need. So families are still signing up every day that they’re in need,” he added. “But we don’t have a cancellation for sign-up. The organization serves between 400 and 500 children during a typical year, he said, and needs enough gifts for 600 kids this year based on the number of parents and grandparents who have signed up so far. Lucy May | WCPO Andy Brunsman, left, holds Beverly Simpson's hands in his and prays.īe Concerned served a record-breaking number of children last year through its Christmas Store, Brunsman said, helping parents and grandparents provide gifts for 750 kids.