Representatives from the Marine Corp., Nevada Department of Public Safety, Legislative Police, Joyce Buckingham, Toys for Tots executive director, and Santa on the steps of the Capitol on Tuesday.
The annual Toys for Tots drive collected 17 full bins of donated toys Tuesday at the state Capitol.
The event in its 14th year is organized by the Capitol Police to help the U.S. Marine Corps, which sponsors the nationwide Christmas toy drive. A half dozen Marines form the Carson City recruiting station were on hand for the presentation as well as members of the Capitol and Legislative Police.
Joyce Buckingham, representing Toys for Tots, said the goal is to make sure every child has something under the tree Christmas morning.
“We have to take care of over 2,000 children in four counties,” she said.
The drive provides toys to needy families not just in Carson City but Douglas, Storey and Lyon counties.
She said the donations come from state employees in all three branches of government and that, with the economy once again booming, “we’re seeing a huge outpouring of support by the community — more so than ever.”
In addition to the toys, the Nevada Law Enforcement Officers Association presented Buckingham with a $500 check.
She said she wanted to give a special thanks to the efforts of Susan Riolo and Becky King of the state Fire Marshal’s Office as well as Capitol Police Officer Steve Fleischmann for their work in making the drive a success.
“They’re my elves,” she said.
Families in need for toys for Christmas are encouraged to call the following hotline phone numbers for Toys for Tots: 775-799-0918 for English or 775-799-0877 for Spanish. Sign up for Toys for Tots between 9 a.m.to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Toys for Tots runs until Dec. 20.
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