THUNDER BAY – “O” Division Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) will once again be coordinating transportation and delivery of toys to disadvantaged children living in remote northern Canadian communities this Christmas.
This year we are getting a head-start with our campaign, and our partners from the Canadian Toy Association and Thomson Terminals are already working to collect toy donations. Thanks to them, we are hoping to have a banner year and the RCMP is poised to deliver more toys than ever before.
The RCMP has participated in the Toys for the North Christmas drive since 2010 in partnership with the Canadian Toy Association and Thomson Terminals transportation.
It takes a lot of people to make Toys for the North a success; in addition to our partner companies, we are grateful for all of the corporate donations and those from private businesses and the caring public, who through their generosity, help to put smiles on the faces of children.
We are also grateful to the hundreds of volunteers who sort toys, gift wrap, provide transportation, coordinateand distribute the toys. We wish to thank the Royal Canadian Air Force and volunteers from North Star Air, Gardewine, RCMP Veterans’ Association, RCMP Detachments employees and policing partners for all that you do to bring Toys to the North.
To date, we have made the holidays a little brighter by distributing over $542,000 worth of toys to children in Northern parts of Newfoundland, Labrador, Manitoba, Nunavut, and Ontario. This year’s toy delivery will takeplace in Northern communities located in Newfoundland/Labrador and Ontario.
In addition to the corporate donations, each year RCMP employees across the GTA and surrounding detachments get involved by making toy donations. We welcome the public if they would like to contribute by dropping off a new unwrapped toy to one of our four GTA detachments in Newmarket, Milton and Toronto AirportDetachment or at our Hamilton-Niagara Regional Detachment in Stoney Creek. Donation boxes will be available at the four offices, Monday to Friday, between October 1, 2019 and November 12, 2019, 9:00 am – 3:30 pm.
“The RCMP is in a unique position in that because we are a National police service we have employees and partnersacross the entire country.” says RCMP Corporal Robert Buller, National coordinator 2019 Toys for the North.“With the exception of police work, I can’t think of a better way to leverage those connections than to coordinate acampaign that delivers toys to children who otherwise would not be a recipient simply because of where they live.”
Be sure to follow the journey of the toys from GTA to Northern Newfoundland/Labrador and Ontario on our Twitter, Facebook and Instagram feeds or by following hashtags #CTAT4N and #ToysForTheNorth
