Mac’s Toy Fund receiving help from other local nonprofits to bring holiday cheer

BECKLEY, WV (WOAY) – This holiday season was supposed to be the 90th annual Mac’s Toy Fund at the Beckley Raleigh County Convention Center.

Due to COVID-19, the toy fund came up with an alternative method to help children this holiday season. When its representatives called, the community answered.

“Because of COVID-19, we were not able to have this party at the convention center, which is usually the Saturday before Christmas,” said Mac’s Toy Fund Treasurer Sherrie Hunter. “Mac’s Toy Fund, we reached out to non-profits in the community that do things for children.”

Several local nonprofit groups, including the Beckley Dream Center and Shop with a Cop, are working with Mac’s Toy Fund to still provide presents this Christmas through smaller events.

“We asked them to write grants to Mac’s Toy Fund and we granted 13 different organizations to be able to extend Christmas,” Hunter said. “We couldn’t do it as we normally did because of the Coronavirus.”

Hunter feels that the long-standing relationship that Mac’s has with the community allowed for on the fly adjustments that are proving to be successful.

“To know that our community still steps to the plate and says, ‘we still want Mac’s Toy Fund to still be an anchor in this community’ after all of those years,” Hunter said. “We were able to help establish the Wyoming County Toy Fund and the Fayette County Toy Fund. We could not have done that without kind, giving people in our community.”

And it’s through the continued donations to Mac’s Toy Fund that organizations on the receiving end of the grants will continue to spread holiday cheer.

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