This year’s holiday season marks the 77th anniversary of the Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program https://www.toysfortots.org . Residences at Deer Creek , Schererville, and Residences at Coffee Creek, Chesterton , https://www.ResidencesSeniorLiving.com are serving as sponsor drop-sites for the Toys for Tots annual campaign of collecting new toys for children they will distribute throughout our Northwest Indiana communities.
Our communities of seniors, their families and friends, our staff, and other service providers who come through our doors, will see the drop boxes displayed in our lobbies. We are also inviting our greater communities to join our support and drop off their donations at either Deer Creek or Coffee Creek. Our doors are open every day until 8 p.m. making it convenient to stop by on your way to work, school, church, shopping, or just because you finally found a moment to make that drop off! The Marines will pick up the boxes on December 12, so shop early (and often)!
Pick up a new toy or game while you’re out and bring it to the drop box unwrapped. The Marines take it from there, ensuring appropriate gifts for appropriate ages. Don’t forget the young teens! Most families in our area are continuing to tighten budgets during the upcoming Christmas season, but many are struggling to even have a budget for their household needs. Can you imagine the stress of these parents and grandparents, wondering how they can create a happy Christmas for their children? Think of the relief for parents and the delight of a child who is opening the gift you provided. You have certainly become the Spirit of Christmas for that home!
Christmas, as it has been said, should be a time to create happy memories, especially for children. Residents in our communities share their memories with us and many recall times in their lives when they or their families needed a little help from someone. Whether it was family, a friend, someone from a church or school or organization; whether or not they knew who helped, they remember the difference it made all these years later.
They also mention how hard it was to admit they needed help and to ask for what they needed. We’re always learning from our residents, from their collective senior wisdom. They continue their genuine desire to be helpful participants inside our senior living communities as well as in our greater communities. We are constantly and eagerly responding to opportunities for their participation. Toys for Tots is a wonderful way to engage us all in the Spirit of Christmas and to send families the message that we care.
