Lee Trawick
Reporter2@Riverbendnews.org
Riverbend News has joined the Marine Corps Reserves Toys for Tots campaign. We will be accepting donations of new, unwrapped toys until Saturday, Dec. 24, to help ensure kids all over have a wonderful Christmas.
The idea for Toys for Tots began in 1947 when Diane Hendricks, wife of Marine Corps Reserve Major Bill Hendricks, asked him to deliver a few handcrafted dolls to an agency that supports children in need. Upon learning he could not find such an organization, Diane decided to start one. With the help of the Marines in his reserve unit in Louisiana, Major Hendricks and Diane collected over 5,000 toys in their first year.
After seeing how successful it was in just one year, the Commandant of the Marine Corp Reserves directed all sites to implement a Toys for Tots campaign, quickly turning it into a national program. Because Major Hendricks's civilian job was Director of Public Relations at Warner Brothers Studios, he had connections to many celebrities. As such, he asked for their support of the new program. Walt Disney, who was a personal friend of Major Hendricks, designed the first Toys for Tots poster depicting a miniature three-car train, which was adopted as the official logo.
Seventy-five years later, Toys for Tots has become a widely known, non-profit campaign all over the world. Through the program, an average of 18 million toys are distributed to seven million children in need across America.
Donations for new, unwrapped toys can be dropped off at our Riverbend News office, located at 113 NW Duval St., in Live Oak.