Ohio County Toys for Tots annual toy drive has begun

With Thanksgiving just a little over a week away, holiday activities are already gearing up around the county. That includes the Ohio County Toys for Tots annual toy drive efforts.

Along with the donation boxes that have been placed at locations across the county, a number of fundraising events have been planned for the weeks leading up to Christmas.

According to organizer Sierra Grise, Ohio County Toys for Tots serves an average of 150-180 children, but this year there will be even more.

“This year by day four (of registration) we had 175 (registered),” she said. “We have more this year than we have ever had and that seems to be the trend.”

Toys for Tots serves local children between the ages of 0-12. The application process opened on Nov. 1 and will remain open until Dec. 3.

Applications can be filled out online at https://forms.office.com/r/SBXfvgna1c. The link and details are also on the Ohio County KY Toys for Tots’ Facebook page.

Fundraising events planned include the fourth annual Shoots and Ladders event is set for Saturday in the parking lot in front of Cash Express on Main Street in Beaver Dam from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m. Police Officers and firefighters from Beaver Dam and Hartford will be set up and facing off to see who can fill up their fire trucks or cruisers with the most toys and who can raise the most money to benefit the cause. Whoever gets the most cash and toy donations wins the trophy.

The second annual Rock for Tots will be held at 8 p.m. at Drifters in Beaver Dam. Admission for the event is $10 or a new unwrapped toy.

On Dec. 3, the Barbarossa Motorcycle Club will hold its third annual Toy Run. It will begin at 12 p.m. at Ernesto’s Mexican Bar & Grill in Owensboro with kickstands up at 2 p.m. at Beef O’ Brady’s in Beaver Dam where they will be collecting toys from 2:30 to 5 p.m. The cost is a new unwrapped toy or $15 donation per bike.

The annual two-day Toys for Tots bake sale at Cash Express in Beaver Dam will be held Dec. 2 and 3.

The national cutoff for the Toys for Tots drive is age 12, but Ohio County used to serve children up to 16. This year the cutoff in the county is also 12 years old.

“We have difficulty getting donations for older kids,” Grise said.

While Grise said they are always grateful for any and all donations, there is always a need for gifts for the older children between the ages of 9-12 and for infants.

“We typically get very little for the older children and the babies,” she said.

Toys can be dropped off at a number of locations across the county until Dec. 12. Boxes can be found at: Cromwell - Dollar General and Perdue; Beaver Dam - Dollar General locations, Beaver Dam Barber Co., Cafe at the Dam, Beaver Dam Liquors LLC, Walmart, Limestone Bank, Factory Connection, First Kentucky Bank; Hartford - Don Moore, Dollar General, Cecilian Bank, Cork & Case, Commonwealth Community Bank and Dollar General Stores in Centertown, Rosine, Fordsville and Pleasant Ridge.

“We are blessed to be able to do this again this year,” Grise said. “We are grateful to all the businesses that have contributed. It is a beautiful thing to be a part of.”