Toys collected in Madison County stay in Madison County. Here's how to donate, request toys, or volunteer with the Huntsville Toys for Tots campaign this year.

Every December, a red box shows up in a lobby somewhere in Madison County and quietly changes a kid's Christmas morning. That is the whole Toys for Tots idea, and the Huntsville campaign runs it about as well as anybody in the country. The Marine Toys for Tots Program has been running since 1947, and the Huntsville campaign is one of my favorite things about this town in December. The idea is about as simple as it gets. People drop off new, unwrapped toys. Volunteers sort and count them. Families who are having a rough year apply, and right before Christmas those toys go home with local kids. Here's the part I want to make sure you know: toys collected in Madison County stay in Madison County. They go to kids in Huntsville, Madison, Meridianville, Harvest, Hazel Green, New Market, and everywhere in between. It's not a national pool. It's your neighbors. Why I care about this one I'm a Marine. Before real estate, I served, and Toys for Tots was one of the things we pitched in on every December — collecting boxes, sorting toys, loading trucks, and getting them out the door before Christmas. Once you've stood in a warehouse full of donated toys knowing exactly which kids they're headed to, it sticks with you. Twenty-some years later I still look for the red box every winter. I also work with a lot of military families. Families PCSing into Redstone Arsenal in the middle of a school year, families who just got orders and are trying to sell a house in one state while buying in another, families starting over in a town where they don't know a single person yet. Moving is expensive even when everything goes right, and December has a way of arriving whether you're ready for it or not. I get to be part of a lot of great days — closing day, keys in hand, the first Christmas in a new house. Not every family in this county gets a year like that. This is a low-drama, high-impact way to close that gap a little, and the Marines running it locally do it with almost no overhead. Three ways to jump in Donate a toy. New and unwrapped is the rule. One thing worth knowing: teenagers are almost always the hardest age group to cover. Everybody buys for the five-year-olds. So if you're standing in a store wondering what to grab, think sports gear, art supplies, headphones, skincare sets, board games, or gift cards for the 12-to-17 crowd. They're kids too, and they notice when they're the ones who got skipped. Request toys for your family. If money is tight this year, ask. There is genuinely no shame in it, and half the people I know have had a year where they needed a hand. The local campaign posts the application window and requirements every fall on their site. Volunteer or host a box. They need hands for sorting, counting, loading, and distribution day. And if you own a business or run an office, you can sign up to be a drop-off location. It costs you a corner of your lobby and it makes a real difference in the total. Where to go Everything — drop-off locations, dates, the toy request application, and volunteer signup — lives on the official Huntsville campaign site: https://huntsville-al.toysfortots.org/local-coordinator-sites/lco-sites/default.aspx?nPageID=0&nPreviewInd=0&nRedirectInd=3 If you'd like to put a collection box in your office or your neighborhood clubhouse and you want a hand getting connected or getting the word out, text or call me at 256-863-2313 or email chris@move256.com. I'm happy to help promote it. Have a good season, and thanks for looking out for the Rocket City's kids. Chris Kelly, REALTOR®, MRP Weichert, Realtors® – The Space Place 256-863-2313 · chris@move256.com · move256.com I'm not affiliated with, and don't collect donations on behalf of, the Marine Toys for Tots Program or the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation. Donations go directly through the official campaign. Toys for Tots is a registered trademark of the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation.

Weichert, Realtors
The Space Place — Huntsville

Toys for Tots Season Is Here — Here's How Huntsville Can Help