In 2011, a former Marine and member of the Waubonsee Veterans Club/SALUTE began the college’s annual involvement in the Marines’ Toys for Tots initiative to distribute toys to less fortunate children at Christmas. Since then, the Veterans Club/SALUTE at Waubonsee has continued this tradition each holiday season as a way for military-connected students and other student organizations at Waubonsee to share generously with the local community.
This year, in partnership with the Student Nurses Association and the Delta Collective Club, the Veterans Club/SALUTE hopes to have its most successful Toys for Tots toy drive the college has seen in a decade. By developing partnerships to support the Toys for Tots drive, the Veterans Club/SALUTE provides its members an opportunity to widen its impact in the community and an opportunity to develop camaraderie with different colleagues across campus.
Faculty, staff, students and community members are invited to drop off donations of new, unwrapped toys at any Waubonsee campus location from Nov. 8 through Dec. 6. Below are the drop-off locations:
- Sugar Grove Campus, Dickson Center on the second floor by the fireplace and in the Student Center lobby.
- Aurora Downtown Campus, lobby entrance.
- Aurora Fox Valley Campus, near the information desk.
- Plano Campus, near the information desk.
Toys for Tots was started by Marine Corps Reserve Major Bill Hendricks to provide toys to less fortunate children at Christmas. The highly recognizable Toys for Tots’ miniature, three-car train logo was designed by Walt Disney, a friend of Major Hendricks. In 1948, the United States Marine Corps adapted and expanded the program into a national community action project. Over 300 million toys have been donated to more than 150 million children around the world.
For more information about the Toys for Tots drive at Waubonsee, the Veterans Club/SALUTE or individualized services for military-connected students, such as help navigating federal and state benefits, academic and financial planning, or applying for college credit from military training, email Heather Watson, academic and career adviser, at hwatson@waubonsee.edu.
• Heather Watson is the academic and career adviser at Waubonsee Community College.