12.15.06
TOYS FOR TOTS...

The Marine Corps is renowned for its fighting
ability, but the organization also is famous for its nearly 60-year tradition of
ensuring needy children don't have empty Christmas stockings.

The "Toys for Tots" program began in the fall of 1947 when a group of Marine
Reservists based in Los Angeles collected and delivered 5,000 toys to local
needy children, according to the Toys for Tots' non-profit foundation Web site.

Toys for Tots distributed $200 million worth of new toys to more than 7 million
needy children in 2005, Bill Grein, vice president for marketing and development
for the Toys for Tots' foundation, said during a telephone interview with
American Forces Press Service. Grein's office is located at Quantico Marine
Corps Base, Va.

More than 550 Marine Corps' Toys for Tots distribution centers are located
across the country, Grein said, noting the program's busy time starts after
Thanksgiving and runs right up to Christmas. Collected toys are distributed
through local social welfare agencies and other organizations.

Toys for Tots enables families of limited means to provide something for their
children on Christmas, Grein said. Besides toys for young children, the program
also seeks gift donations suitable for teenagers, such as hand-held video games,
purses, watches and other items.

"We think it's important for these children to go back to school and to be able
to say: 'I got something, too,'" he said. "It's a positive experience in their
lives, and when you look back on your childhood, that's what you remember."

Grein, a retired Marine major, has worked at the foundation since 1991, when
then-Secretary of Defense Richard B. Cheney authorized the Marine Corps to work
with the foundation on behalf of Toys for Tots.

The foundation augments the Marines' efforts by conducting year-round
solicitations for new toy donations and money from U.S. corporations to buy
toys, Grein said.

"The Marines just didn't have the time, other than for the toy-collection
process that goes on in November and December every year," Grein said. "We know
that our Marine units out there are going to run out of toys before they run out
of children.

"It happens every year, sadly," he said.

From 1947 through 1979, the Marines collected both new and used toys to provide
to needy children for Christmas. During that time Marine Reservists would
refurbish and repair the used toys on their drill weekends.

In 1980, the reserve components were incorporated into the Defense Department's
total force concept, resulting in greatly reduced time for reservists to
refurbish donated used toys for the program. Efforts were then focused on
collecting and providing only new toys.

The Marine Corps continues to work to ensure needy children have memorable
Christmases, Grein said. In 2005, the Marines collected and distributed about
$50 million worth of new toys through their Toys for Tots program, he said.
Foundation-solicited sponsors contributed another $150 million worth of toys.

"What's happened is that the foundation has provided additional means of
providing toys so that we can reach more children," Grein said.