SWAMPSCOTT — As the Christmas season rolls around, Swampscott Public Schools are going all-out for another toy drive in collaboration with Toys for Local Children, in order to support families in need during the holiday.
For residents who wish to pitch in for the cause, there are dedicated drop-off zones at the Senior Center and Town Hall. The drive is set to close on Dec. 1.
TLC Coordinator and Swampscott Middle School Teacher Jackie Wilson discussed the initiative’s background and the impact she’s seen it have on community members and volunteers.
“I’ve been collaborating with TLC for about 8 years. I had a dear friend who used to run the program with a colleague of mine, and she passed away… When she passed, it was something that my colleague and I asked, ‘How can we help this legacy live on?’ and it was one of the main reasons we took it over,” Wilson said. “We knew how much passion there was for this program, and we wanted to make sure we continued it.”
Wilson continued, saying that aside from the toy drop-off locations at the Senior Center and Town Hall, the middle school has a “toy room” dedicated to the donation.
“We start wrapping presents in November with our high schoolers, and we have hundreds of toys in that room. So often, a lot of our sponsors help us stock our toys for what we need… We’ve already wrapped close to 350 gifts so far,” she said. She added that they’ve already delivered toys to three families.
For the children and families who request toys, requests are made to their teachers, who add items to an Amazon wish list, in order to make sure the toys collected are the gifts kids have their eyes on as Christmas quickly approaches.
“That’s what you’ll see on our wish list… If someone wants a Spiderman remote-control car, we make sure that we have it,” she said. “So when they open it, they get the item that they told their teacher or parents that they really wanted.”
Wilson said that since taking over the program in 2018, she’s always blown away by the support that the community shows during the holiday season. She said the program currently has 55 families throughout Swampscott and Nahant that offered to help purchase gifts for children.
“They’re receiving a wish list from a family in need that covers toys or warm clothes, and we have 55 families who said, ‘We’re going to take care of this. It’s on us,’ and often they will throw in something special like a boardgame or a fruit basket for the family. … We probably serve close to 2,000 children during the holiday season,” she said.
She cited help from co-coordinators Ashley Mast and Candy Calder for assisting in the toy drive.
Senior Center Assistant Director/ Outreach Social Worker Sabrina Clopton said that seniors will be wrapping donated gifts with high school students for a “true intergenerational experience” in order to help them connect to the community.
“The fact that we could be involved with something that makes the holiday season a little easier for families feels fabulous,” Clopton said.
