Demand for Toys for Tots assistance climbed in the Alle-Kiski Valley this holiday season and held steady in Westmoreland County, reflecting continued financial strain on families.
In the Alle-Kiski Valley, coordinators reported about 700 more children in need of holiday gifts this year, a significant jump from last year, when 38,015 toys were distributed to 4,890 children. In Westmoreland County, demand remained comparable to 2023, with Toys for Tots providing gifts for about 4,000 children across communities south of Route 286.
“We have a lot more families who have signed up. We probably have 700 more children this year. There is definitely a need for assistance,” said Jennifer Weilen, coordinator of the Toys For Tots campaign for the Allegheny Valley Marine Corps No. 827.
Coordinators in both areas said donations and volunteer support are critical to meeting the need as families face inflation and job uncertainty.
“These people just need help, and we’re here to help them. It might be a single mother or a family that is struggling,” Weilen said. She has been the chapter’s Toys For Tots coordinator for five years and has volunteered a total of 16 years.
The chapter has been distributing the toys to needy families over the past five days and was still helping those who missed registering for assistance, Weilen said.
In Westmoreland County, toys were distributed to those who registered in Greensburg, Irwin, Latrobe, Stahlstown, Scottdale and Trafford, said Doug Hurst, coordinator of the Greater Greensburg Detachment No. 834 of the Marine Corps League toys campaign for 24 years.
The Greater Greensburg Detachment is responsible for covering the communities in the county that are south of Route 286, Hurst said.
“We’re trying to make sure everyone gets their gifts,” he said Tuesday, standing among bags marked for a specific family and large boxes of toys and gifts — marked for a specific age group — waiting for distribution.
The generosity of donors surpassed the registered need for assistance. Hurst, who served in the Marine Corps from 1980 to 1986, said he plans to give the leftover gifts to area organizations that will distribute them to needy families.
Those who contributed gifts along the route of the Toys for Tots train last month added some 4,000 gifts to those placed in boxes at stores and other locations, Hurst said.
Among the items distributed this year were enough bikes to fill a large room inside a Hempfield warehouse. Most of the bikes had to be assembled by volunteers, among them elementary students, parents and teachers, high school students and Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, Hurst said.
“We couldn’t have done it ourselves. We could use as much help as we can,” Hurst said.
Truck drivers are needed to collect the more than 500 boxes of donations from the stores and other locations, Hurst said.
“Westmoreland County comes through like gangbusters,” Hurst said. “It’s all for the kids.”
Giving back in Pittsburgh
Sam Gibson is giving back to the organization that once gave to him when he was a single father in need.
The Homewood resident is the newest of four Toys For Tots regional coordinators volunteering countless hours to provide holiday presents for thousands of youngsters throughout Southwestern Pennsylvania.
Gibson and his volunteer team are handling about 30,000 requests for assistance.
The toy warehouse is inside a former Tuesday Morning store in a strip mall near Bakery Square in East Liberty.
Gibson coordinated volunteers from about 30 organizations that volunteered most recently for 20 days in a row.
About 72,000 toys were processed in East Liberty, an increase from last year’s 64,000 toys.
“This year, there will be over 81,000 kids opening up toys in Southwestern Pennsylvania. I’m overwhelmed and gratified,” Gibson said. “This was a tough year for a lot of people. With the government shutdown and inflation and things costing so much, this was well-needed.”
Added Gibson: “It’s beyond a full-time job, volunteering, but we make it work by the grace of God.”
He credited the immense support from corporations, fire departments, nonprofits, individuals, organizations and more for making a separate Toys For Tots in-person shopping event possible Saturday, Dec. 20, in East Liberty.
“We had more than 300 kids show up and Santa Claus, elves, and we did this to make sure we can provide to anyone who needs it,” Gibson said.
Additionally, Gibson and his volunteers have delivered gifts to recipients who are homebound and are providing toys for upcoming Kwanzaa and Moorish-American Muslim celebrations.
Toys for Tots historically serves kids as old as 13, but this year, Gibson added services for older teens, up to 16, thanks to more than 50 volunteers representing U.S. Steel Corp. who packed Christmas Day bags filled with gifts for older children.
