FFTP Hearts United Community Day: Urgent Need for Toys and School Supplies to Fulfill Children’s Wishes
COCONUT CREEK, Fla. (August 5, 2022) Food For The Poor is in urgent need of toys and school supplies for thousands of children who live in the charity’s donor-supported Angels Of Hope children’s homes in the Caribbean and Latin America.
FFTP is hosting its second Hearts United Community Day on Saturday, Aug. 20, to collect and pack those items in its warehouse, 6401 Lyons Road, Coconut Creek.
Donors can choose a toy or school supplies from the charity’s AmazonSmile list and the items will be shipped directly to FFTP. Go to www.FoodForThePoor.org/toydrive and click on the AmazonSmile button to shop.
Donors also can drop off items at the warehouse or contact FFTP to make arrangements for pickup.
Volunteers in the warehouse must be 18, but there are other ways for younger family members to help, either by hosting a collection drive or dropping off goods on the day of the event.
“We need everybody’s help to spread the word by letting your friends, church members and family know that we need as many toys as possible,” FFTP President/CEO Ed Raine said.
“Imagine the joy of a child who receives a toy for the first time or supplies to help them succeed in school,” Raine added. “With your generous help, we can help make this Christmas extra special for boys and girls in our Angels Of Hope homes.”
Items needed include: soccer balls, drawstring bags, backpacks, coloring puzzle sets, kites, magnetic tile toys, bracelet-making kits, building blocks, Snap-n-Learn Dinos, tissue paper, gift bags, loose leaf paper, spiral-bound notebooks, composition books, blue pens, pencils, sharpeners, large erasers, geometry sets, 12-inch rulers and scientific calculators.
Volunteers also are needed to sort and pack the toys and school supplies. They can choose from two sessions – 9 to 10:30 a.m. or 11 to 12:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 20.
Register for the event or schedule a pickup date for donated items at www.FoodForThePoor.org/toydrive.
Hearts United Community Day is the centerpiece of FFTP’s new Volunteer Program. In April, volunteers packed 2,016 hygiene kits and 2,080 women’s care kits in the first Hearts United Community Day event. Two more Hearts United events are scheduled for November and December.
Last year, donors provided more than $21,000 worth of toys via the charity’s AmazonSmile list that were delivered to children in need. FFTP also received three tractor-trailers worth of toys and stuffed animals from longstanding donors Harvest Time, Gleaning For The World and Matthew 25 Ministries.
“We’re so grateful to our donors and to our volunteers for their help and support,” FFTP Volunteer Coordinator Pennie Stagnitta said. “We could not do what we do without their support.”
Food For The Poor, one of the largest international relief and development organizations in the nation, does much more than feed millions of hungry children and families living in poverty primarily in 17 countries of the Caribbean and Latin America. This interdenominational Christian ministry provides emergency relief assistance, clean water, medicine, educational materials, homes, support for vulnerable children, care for the aged, skills training and micro-enterprise development assistance. For more information, please visit www.FoodForThePoor.org.
Michael Turnbell
Communications Associate
954-471-0928 – mobile
[email protected]
