Toys

I am not even sure how it started, but somehow we got the idea to collect toys for Silas' birthday and donate them to the hospital. We did this just a few days after he passed away and delivered the toys on his birthday, June 4th. Last year we did the same, we collected toys and then delivered them to the hospital on Silas' birthday. We had about the same amount to donate both years.

This year we have expanded a little. We started collecting earlier, about a month ahead of time, and we asked several locations to collect toys for us! The local newspaper even ran an add for us. As of today it looks like we have about 4 times as much as we had each of the previous two years and we aren't even finished collecting yet! I am so excited to make the delivery to the hospital on Thursday!

We could not have done this without this community! So many people have come together to make donations for this toy drive, it is wonderful! People don't often realize how much a simple toy can make a difference in the life of a child fighting illness, injury, or disease. Something to hold onto when momma has to leave the room during radiation. Something to special when a child has to be in the hospital on his or her birthday. A little prize for being brave and taking the yucky medicine or being still during an injection. Or something to help pass the time during the hours of a round of chemotherapy.

Silas used to play with action figures in the play room. One was named Dr. Johnston, some were named after his chemotherapies, and then there was the cancer guy whom they fought against. Actually, they rather smashed cancer guy.

I don't know how many years we will continue this tradition, but for now, I am very glad we are doing this. We cannot give Silas gifts for his birthday, but we can, with the help of the community, bless other children.

Thank you all so very much for helping us make this happen, we couldn't do it without you!