Toy For Joy Still Needs $145,140.00 by Xmas!

By giving to Toy for Joy, this Ludlow mother is saying Christmas is for children - Won't you please help donate?

SPRINGFIELD - Debby Miele of Ludlow said she and her husband Antonio decided to give $200 to Toy for Joy because "every child should have a Christmas."

She said that in years past she used to give to organizations at her children's schools that buy toys for children.

Now, she said, her children are out of college, but she still thinks about children at Christmas.

(Click on coupon to enlarge.)

"There are people who are unemployed," she said. "I wanted to help other children."

She said she remembers a story her mother told her about a difficult year when her grandmother took $20 out of her mother's piggy bank so her mother could have a Christmas.

"That story was in the back of my mind," Debby Miele said.

This year's goal is to raise $150,000 by Christmas Eve to provide toys and gifts for an estimated 20,000 children across Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin Counties.

For more information on Toy for Joy, call the Salvation Army at (413) 733-1518.

To make a contribution, write to Toy for Joy, P.O. Box 3007, Springfield, MA 01102. Contributions may also be dropped off with the coupon at The Republican, 1860 Main St., Springfield, weekdays between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Contributions will be taken in person at the newspaper until noon on Dec. 24.

Here's a list of the latest contributors:

A friend: $50.00

Anonymous: $10.00

Miss you Ma, Lena: $10.00

From Jacob, Jared and Jackson Coker: $100.00

Al and Phyllis Murdock and sons: $100.00

In memory of Judy Savos, Pat and Gloria: $50.00

Tony and Debby Miele: $200.00

In memory of Robert F. Meehan: $20.00

In memory of Elsie Knodler, missed by all of her grandchildren: $20.00

In memory of Michael Meehan: $20.00

In loving memory of Mary E. Stephens: $50.00

In memory of our grandson Joshua Bailey: $25.00

In loving memory of Shirley and George Wrinkle and Susan Muller: $30.00

Happy Holidays to all from Sandy Kane: $100.00

In loving memory of Rita Normand, love Dori, Ed, Shannon and Courtney: $50.00

Merry Christmas from the East Windsor Walkers: $50.00

In memory of Charlotte Lacoste and Vivian Godek, love Paul and Debbie: $100.00

Happy Holidays: $100.00

In memory of Albert Bailey IV, Mom and Dad: $25.00

In loving memory of our parents from Lloyd and Pat: $20.00

In loving memory of Elva and Dwight Viggers: $25.00

In memory of Chip Grimaldi from Anthony and Emily: $50.00

In memory of Eileen M. O'Connor, Fred, Red and Molly: $10.00


RECEIVED: $1,215.00
TOTAL TO DATE: $4,860.00
STILL NEEDED: 145,140.00