The Jeeps on the Run crowd delivered once again this year, with an estimated $130,000 worth of toys and $60,000 in cash collected for the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots programs in Lake and McHenry counties.

That’s despite an overnight storm that dropped half a foot of snow, despite lower-than-usual numbers of participants, and despite an economy that has some folks cutting back, said Mike Missak, president of Jeeps on the Run. The group’s 13th annual Toys for Tots Run and after-party took place Dec. 7.

In a recent address to Facebook and YouTube followers, Missak and his wife, April, offered special praise to this year’s participants and supporters. While the amount generated was not a leap forward from previous years, the fact it held steady was an “absolutely incredible” win, they said.

“We had 100 fewer Jeeps show up than the 400 that were registered,” Mike Missak said.

Those who did show up stepped up, continuing to build on JOTR’s reputation for delivering impressive quantities of high-quality items. Mike Missak said the almost $130,000 value attached to the two truckloads of toys collected is a conservative estimate based on an average of $12 a toy.

“I spent some time out at the toy drop area,” Missak said. “There were bikes. There were Power Wheels. ... I saw no $12 toys out there.”

The $60,000 to be donated to the Lake and McHenry County programs came from event sponsorships, direct donations and raffle ticket sales, including tickets purchased for a chance to win a new Jeep Gladiator fully donated by Title Sponsor Ray Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram, with 100 percent of proceeds going to the cause.

Winning the Jeep this year was Angie Rodkey, a Delaware Jeep fan who follows JOTR’s YouTube channel and decided to buy a ticket. Rodkey flew Dec. 13 to O’Hare Airport, where Mike Missak gathered her and a friend to collect her prize.

“Ray has given $300,000 worth of vehicles and donations toward Jeeps on the Run events and causes,” Missak said. “We cannot thank (Dealership Principal and President) Ray Scarpelli Jr. and his team enough for all of their support.”

When Missak arrived about 6 a.m. Dec. 7 at Ray Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Fox Lake where run participants would gather, Ray employees already had been clearing snow for at least an hour.

“Even with the snow, it was a very successful event,” Missak said. “People loved the SEMPLE Band at the after-party. They enjoyed some of our new activities like the photo hunt and the duck hunt. Kids of all ages were getting excited about it.”

Event coordinators already are mulling the changes that will keep existing fans engaged and spark new interest for next year, he said.

“Tens of thousands of kids experience joy on Christmas morning due to the local Toys for Tots programs,” Missak said. “That we are able to contribute as significantly as we do ... seeing toys literally spill out of these Jeeps as they arrive, some of them pulling trailers full of toys behind them, and watching as the semi-tractor trailers fill up, it’s highly motivating.”