Hundreds of toys donated during Channel 4 Toy Drive

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Dozens stopped by News4JAX Thursday for our Channel 4 Toy Drive — an effort to ensure children in our community have gifts for the holidays.

The people who stopped by 4 Broadcast Place said the toy drive truly warms their hearts. The Positively Jax event ended at 7 p.m.

Community members donated toys ranging from bicycles, to dolls and footballs, to stuffed animals and more!

American Transmission saw our broadcast Thursday morning and donated 40 bikes — a bike for every year they’ve been in business.

Amanda DeVoe: It’s my understanding that the owner saw our newscast this morning and saw that there was a need for giving away some toys and you all decided to go by a local store and pick up dozens of bikes, correct?

“That is correct,” Mark Speed with American Transmission said. “He gave me a call and told me, Mark, I want to get 40 bicycles and carry them, and donate them to the children and give back to the community. The children are where everything starts so we were happy to do that.”

Others said it’s something they’ve done for years, saying they know there are a lot of kids out there who have parents going through a hard time and they’re going to be very pleased.

“It means obviously that they’ll have presents they may not have gotten so it’s a feel-good thing,” one donator said.

Summit Contracting Group, the group building an apartment building across the street from Channel 4, decided to donate toys as well.

“We thought this was a perfect opportunity to just to get it started, bring some gifts help out the kids in the community and make those community relationships,” Lindsey Collier, Marketing Coordinator, Summit Contracting Group, said.

If you didn’t get a chance to donate a toy on Thursday, News4JAX will be accepting toys until Dec. 3 at the station.

All of the toys donated are going to children in need on Dec. 9 at the annual Children’s Christmas Party of Jacksonville at the Prime Osborn Convention Center.

Children’s Christmas Party of Jacksonville information:

When: Saturday, Dec. 9

Time: Doors open at 9 a.m. to families and will go on until 12 p.m. *Children must be present to receive toys

Location: Prime F. Osborn III Convention Center, 1000 Water Street, Downtown Jacksonville