Our Toy Story

In November of 2003 the CRVA Veterans’ Club in Sacramento, California sought a way to acknowledge the dedication and service of parents serving in uniform. Many of these military personnel are sacrificing everything, while being separated from their families during the Holidays. With very little time to prepare, the middle-aged warhorses of CRVA launched the first Toys for the Troops’ Kids Toy Drive. The beneficiaries of this first annual Toy Drive were the families at Travis Air Force Base and the California National Guard.

The goal was to provide two toys per child of every military parent deployed overseas. The first effort in 2003 was a booming success; all requests from both Travis AFB and the California National Guard were fulfilled.

Based on the overwhelming response and the volume of toys collected in 2003, the leadership of the toy drive formed CRVA Charities, Inc., a non-profit California corporation. CRVA Charities, Inc. obtained tax-exempt status from the IRS and the Franchise Tax Board so that all future donations, whether monetary or in kind, could be considered tax-deductible for the donor.

Realizing that the citizens in the Greater Sacramento Area had a big heart for the military, CRVA Charities expanded their scope for Christmas 2004 and added the families of Beale AFB to their list of beneficiaries. Again, the Toy Drive far exceeded its expectations for all three military commands.

In 2005, CRVA Charities, Inc. took another big step and added Lemoore Naval Air Station to the now- growing list of beneficiaries receiving toys for the kids of troops serving overseas. For Christmas, 2005, the Toy Drive exceed expectations as before, with a surplus of toys delivered to Travis AFB for children as their parent deployed later in the following year.

The past toy drives, and the 2007 effort, were all made possible by the co-sponsorship of generous benefactors. The Peter P. Bollinger Investment Co. graciously provided the use of its property as the major collection sites for the Toy Drive at the Sunrise Festival Shopping Center in Citrus Heights and the Lake Crest Village Shopping Center in Sacramento. Sunrise MarketPlace has contributed invaluable administrative and media efforts. Finally, the cities of Citrus Heights and Sacramento have provided equipment and traffic control for the many contributors who come to support the US military families with gifts of toys.

With the obvious successes, and enlarging support by the Sacramento Region’s business community, Toys for the Troops’ Kids has added other toy drop-off locations throughout the Greater Sacramento Area as well as in other neighboring counties. In 2007, the Sunrise Pointe Shopping Center in Roseville will join Sunrise Festival and Lake Crest Village as our major toy donation sites, with all three sites operating from 10 am to 7 pm, from December 1 to December 23.

The historical success of this annual Toy Drive compels expansion in 2007 to include families at US military bases not only in California, but also in Nevada, Hawaii, Washington and Arizona as intended beneficiaries. CRVA Charities Inc. is confident that through the expansion of the toy drop-off sites and donations collected (to include donations made through this website), it will be able to meet the requests of the military in five states for Christmas 2007. Should the 2007 results warrant further growth, the 2008 Toy Drive and later efforts will likewise expand the list of beneficiary families of the American Military. But no matter how much Toys for the Troops’ Kids grows, it is the charitable and giving spirit of donors and volunteers that make it all possible.

Brave and very special Dads and Moms, separated from their spouses and children at Christmas, have promised us that, for so long as they wear the uniform, we will be safe. We of the Toys for the Troops’ Kids think that our efforts are the least that we can do.

For more information on the great 2006 Toy Drive effort please use the link for the After Action Report for Christmas 2006. Likewise, find out more about the upcoming events and schedules for the Christmas 2007 Toy Drive by exploring our website.