With the holiday season upon us, there’s no better time to reflect upon the blessings of family, friends, home, and hearth. While many people have a roof over their head, jobs to help pay the bills, and a holiday feast to enjoy with friends and family, and gifts to unwrap; these simple things we sometimes take for granted aren’t always as plentiful for others.
Although Oz Moving believes in giving back to our community throughout the year, the holidays frame the importance of charity and gratitude all the more. It’s a season fueled by the joy of children opening presents, experiencing family traditions, and having a chance to see relatives they haven’t seen in ages. When you look back on your own fond memories, it’s important to pause and reflect that not every child has an opportunity to have a wonderful holiday memory.
With this in mind, Oz Moving has worked with Toys for Tots during the past few holiday seasons. We’ve donated our moving trucks and our drivers have been happy to lend a hand to this great organization to help move donated toys to distribution centers to ensure that children who may not have otherwise received a gift have the opportunity to open a present that will bring them joy in the coming year.
Thinking Locally, Acting Globally
Each year, Toys for Tots collects donations of new, unwrapped toys and gives them to children who are less fortunate. The organization began its mission in 1947. What started out as a local Los Angeles charity dreamed up by USMCR Major Bill Hendrix and his wife, became an organization that spread throughout the entire country in the span of a few short decades.
Toys for Tots came about when Major Hendricks’s wife wanted to donate a stuffed toy to less privileged child and couldn’t find an organization to help he do so. As a result, Toys for Tots was born. In that first year, the U.S. Marines and U.S. Marine Corps Reserve collected over 5,000 toys donated by Los Angeles residents and were able to give them to local children in the community. Toys were dropped off at designated locations in the area and later collected and distributed to children during the holidays. By 1996, organization grew and communities in each of the 50 states had Toys for Tots drop-off locations.
How Oz Is Helping the Cause
Last year, Oz Moving donated trucks and time to help deliver toys from their drop-off locations at various points throughout New York’s five boroughs to Toys for Tots distribution centers. To help make finding a place to donate toys easier, we put together an interactive map showing folks where they could drop off their new, unwrapped toys; warm coats; and other holiday gifts for children who were less fortunate. Thanks to the kind donations of thousands of New Yorkers, Toys for Tots was able to make the holidays for NYC children much brighter.
Since Los Angeles has a special place in the heart of the Toys for Tots organization and to Oz Moving, too, we’ve used our presence in the LA area to help others find where they can make their Toys for Tots donations. Much like Oz Moving has expanded to provide our services to those on the West Coast, our interactive Toys for Tots donation map shows L.A. residents where they can drop off toys for children in their community, too!
If you’d like to help make a child’s holiday a little happier, please consider making a donation to Toys for Tots. They’re a great organization that has been bringing joy to children across the country for many decades. This season, count your blessings and share what you can with those less fortunate than you.
From the Oz Moving family to yours, Happy Holidays and best wishes for a happy, healthy 2015!
