Causecast

#10: How To Organize A Community Toy Drive

by CLAIRE GRINTON, Contributing Writer

With the recession taking its toll on families across the country, many won’t be able to afford holiday presents for their children. This winter, organize a toy drive in your community and make the season a little bit brighter for local children.

Step One: Pick the parameters of the toy drive.

To begin, determine how you’ll collect toys and who you’ll be donating them to. Organizations like The Boys and Girls Club of America and the YMCA often have their hands on the pulse of the community and can point you towards needy schools or organizations, if not to their own programs. You can also contact your local government, who may have a list of schools or nonprofits that are seeking donations.

Step Two: Make contacts.

Once you’ve decided the recipients of the donated toys, contact community leaders to determine the specific needs and desires of the recipients. If you can’t get a list, take a peek at this list of educational toys by age, or the most popular toys for kids up to 18 years old. Also be sure to find out what kind of technology is available to this community; CDs, DVDs, and video games are generous gifts but if they don’t have a way to play them, everyone loses. Most importantly, confirm the estimated number of children in a couple of age ranges, so there will be something for everyone.

Step Three: Set the schedule and organize your drop site and gift transport.

Next, decide the scope of the drive – if your toy drive will take place on a single day or event, or if donations will be collected over a period of time. These decisions will drastically change the next steps of organization. If you’re collecting toys on a specific day, you’ll likely need to get a street permit and rent a truck to collect the items and distribute them. If you’re collecting toys for a specific organization, you may be able to use their location as a drop site and distribution center in one. If instead you would like to collect donations over a period of time, you’ll need to set up temporary donation drop sites either at one fixed location or in multiple locations.

Step Four: Build a simple website.

Having a main contact is central to the success of your toy drive. The easiest way to do this is to build a website with details of where to drop toys, what toys to buy, who to contact with questions, and how to volunteer. Check this list of best practices to help you decide what you need on your site. Having a site will make it easier to make your toy drive an annual event.

If building a website isn’t practical for you, opt for a Facebook event page to spread info about the toy drive.

Step Five: Find a sponsor.

Naturally, setting up donation drop sites, getting street permits, and rallying your community for a big event can add to the costs that need to be accounted for when organizing a successful toy drive, and for that reason you might consider signing on a corporate sponsor. For example, getting a grocery chain to sign on can provide drop sites at their store locations. Other sponsors may be able to help fund temporary drop sites in public spaces, as well as raise awareness for the toy drive.

Step Six: Get the word out.

Talk to folks at the PTA, the racquetball court, your job and your book club. These personal connections will make others more likely to participate. Put up flyers in grocery stores, gyms, schools, and coffee shops to tell folks about the event, and reach out to your local news stations to see if they’ll do a piece on the event – preferably before the event to help boost participation in the toy drive.

Step Seven: Distribute the toys.

Once you’ve planned the entire toy drive, the last step is easy! Round up the toys and donate them!

Step Eight: Keep everyone in the loop and follow-up.

When the event is over and done, be sure to let those who participated know the final impact of the drive. Post pictures, total items donated, and more on your website (or Facebook event page) so that everyone can see ultimate response. Thank outside groups that helped organize or host the drive, so that they may feel compelled to help again if you decide to repeat the drive in the future.

Your toy drive can be an opportunity to raise awareness about local families in need. More than anything, remember that children need your compassion in June just as much as in December, so hang onto these tips so you can keep community organizing in 2010.

Check out more Holiday Do It Yourself Projects.

Photo by Llima, flickr.