Countywide : Marine Reserve Toy Drive Exceeds Goal
After a shaky start, the Marine Reserves’ toy collection drive in the county this year surpassed the goal and set a record, a Marine spokeswoman said Tuesday.
Sgt. Barbara E. Omohundro said 32,000 items were collected during this year’s countywide Toys for Tots drive, a 39-year-old nationwide program.
The Marines had set a goal of 25,000 toys. But by Dec. 15, the deadline for the campaign, only 13,000 had been collected. The Marines then extended the program five days and made public appeals.
“The news media really helped us. People really came through in the end, especially during the last two days,” Omohundro said.
Last year, the Marines set a county goal of 20,000 toys and exceeded it by 1,000.
The 190 U.S. Marine Reserve units in the country collected about 4 million toys this year, a spokesman at the national headquarters in New Orleans said.
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