By By JONATHAN CLAYBORNE
Staff Writer
Volunteers working on behalf of the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program report that donations are falling short of targets in Beaufort County.
In response, the deadline for the program has been extended to Monday, the nonprofit Downtown Washington on the Waterfront announced.
The extension came after reports that drop-off boxes weren’t filling up quickly enough — if at all.
“That’s what everyone’s been reporting back to us,” said Beth Byrd, DWOW administrator. “I think the demand is up.”
As of Tuesday, nearly 900 Toys for Tots applications had been turned in by parents, according to Lisa Woolard, executive director of the Beaufort-Hyde Partnership for Children.
More than 1,100 Beaufort County children received toys through the program last year, Woolard said.
This year, “I’m expecting the numbers to be higher than that,” she related.
“I’m thinking we’re going to need at least 1,200 toys this year,” Woolard commented.
Even if that many toys are collected, there’s no guarantee that each toy will match the gender of its corresponding recipient, making the need that much greater, she said.
“I know that there are a lot of people out there that are trying to help these families,” Woolard said. “There are a lot of sad stories out there that you wouldn’t believe.”
Applications for the program may be submitted to the partnership until noon Friday. The partnership is located at 979 Washington Square Mall on 15th Street.
The partnership is open from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. weekdays, but Friday’s application deadline is noon.
Applications also may be submitted to Beaufort County JobLink,1385 John Small Ave., Washington.
JobLink is open from 7:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays.
The Washington Christmas Flotilla was intended to be the big collection date for Toys for Tots, said Richard Morin of DWOW and the Washington (Noon) Rotary.
“That’s where the parents come with their kids and the stores drop off their stuff,” Morin said.
Bad weather affected the flotilla, he pointed out.
“Our collections were really low,” Morin stated.
He added, “We are way behind where we were last year.”
Local toy drop-off locations can be found on the Internet at www.toysfortots.org.
“It would be a shame if any child went without a toy for Christmas when they could get one,” Woolard said.