Despite the rainy conditions Saturday, dozens of cars and motorcycles came out for the fifth annual Crusin’ for Tots toy drive.
The toy drive itself is in its eighth year, started by Pack 9 Cub Scout Troop in Caledonia.
“I started the toy drive when my son was a Cub Scout, eight years ago,” said Philesa DeSmidt, founder of the event. “We had to do a community project and this is what we started.”
Eventually, the Southern Cruisers Car Club and multiple motorcycle clubs got involved.
The Southern Cruisers is a local car club with around 40 members from the Golden Triangle and adjacent areas.
The group sets up early in the morning and collects toys while showing off the cars. Then the cars and motorcycles combine at the old K-Mart building to form a convoy down Highway 45 and ride to Caledonia, ending at the Pack 9 hut.
“The Southern Cruisers do this to show our cars off and collect toys and we also accept cash donations,” said Carl Ulmer, director for the group. “This is our fifth year. We try to do something for the community. This time of year, especially with the economy the way it is, we just try to put something together for Christmas. That’s what it’s all about, the kids.”
The weather wasn’t ideal for the drive this year, but DeSmidt was happy with the turnout.
“I think the rain ran off some of our participants, but we had a pretty good show,” she said. “There’s a pretty good amount that came out. The donations have been really good today. I think we had a pretty good amount donated.”
The toy drive is only the start though. There are drop off boxes for toys at Dollar General in Caledonia, Dollar General on Highway 12, Bloomers Nursery in Caledonia and the package store in Caledonia, and toys can be dropped off through Dec. 14.
Once all of the toys are gathered, they will be organized by age group and adopted parents will come in and “shop” for gifts.
“The parents of the children that probably wouldn’t get toys this year will be able to come in and shop for free,” DeSmidt said. “That way the parents are still involved and they get to pick out their toys for their kids. Those nominees come from the community. They call or message me on Facebook and let me know they feel like this family needs to be helped this year. I contact the family. They never know who nominated them, it remains confidential. I let them know that they’ve been nominated and ask if we can adopt them. If they agree, then we set up a time for them to come in and shop for their kids.”
She said the idea was the result of personal experiences.
“What all started this was me being a less fortunate child growing up, so I wanted these kids to not have to feel the way that I felt growing up,” she said. “I wanted to do something that would benefit the community.”
Other toy drives
Anyone who wasn’t able to make it to the event on Saturday need not worry. There are other toy drives happening locally.
The Mossy Oak Mall and Junior Auxiliary of West Point will host a toy and coat drive from 1-4 p.m. this upcoming Saturday. There will be free pictures with Santa and 20 percent off of your entire purchase with a donation.
The Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office and the Community Benefit Committee are also hosting a toy drive to support Lowndes County foster children and trustee kids. Donations can be dropped off at the Sheriff’s Office, 527 South Martin Luther King Jr. Dr.
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