Martin Selig Real Estate Partners with Toys for Tots to Deliver Joy During the Holidays

Martin Selig Real Estate Partners With Toys For Tots

For the tenth year, Martin Selig Real Estate is partnering with the Toys for Tots King County chapter to collect toy donations from Dec. 2-6 for children in the Greater Seattle Area.

The winter holidays in Seattle turn the city into a dreamy wonderland of festive spirit and decorations. From construction cranes donning their Santa hats to our own 32-foot holiday tree spreading cheer, there’s nothing quite like December in the Emerald City.

Perhaps our favorite holiday tradition is Martin Selig Real Estate’s partnership with Marine Toys for Tots of King County. By gathering toy donations and distributing them to less fortunate children, Toys for Tots lends the gift of joy to struggling kids and their families during the holidays.

Sharing the Gift of Joy

Toys for Tots has been delivering toys to children since the 1940s as part of a World War II grass roots effort. That first year, the organization donated 5,000 toys. Almost fifty years later, in 1991, the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-for-profit charity was established at the behest of the U.S. Marine Corps, to help support the Marine Toys for Tots program.

The sole purpose of Toys for Tots is to provide a tangible gift of hope during the holidays. From October-December, local coordinators – usually Marine veterans – in over 800 communities send out donation bags to collect new, unwrapped toys. Then in December, volunteers organize the collections and distribute them to area families.

Donating to Toys for Tots at an MSRE Property

For MSRE, this means collecting donations at many of our properties around Seattle. We will be placing donation bags in participating properties on December 2. Bags will be in place for the week to encourage tenants, visitors and residents alike to gift unwrapped toys.

On December 6, our local coordinator will return to MSRE properties, collect our donations and later distribute them to registered families.

This year, toys will be collected from the following properties

• 1000 Second Avenue
• 3^rd & Battery
• 4^th & Battery
• 4^th & Blanchard
• 5^th & Yesler
• West Harrison Plaza South Tower

There are no rules on what kinds of toys to donate, other than they must be new and unwrapped. Bring a toy you loved as a child or go on the hunt for the latest toy craze from this year.

Toys for Tots is always looking for toys for older children (up to age 12) as well. We’ll take it all!

While we can’t put donation bins in every property, we never want to exclude a donor. If you would like to make a donation but don’t have access to a nearby bin, we’ll gladly make arrangements to have the toys collected another way.

A Decade of Donating

This is MSRE’s tenth year working with Toys for Tots. Each year, our goal is to collect more toys than the year before. We have big shoes to fill, as last year Toys for Tots of King County delivered nearly 75,000 toys to over 55,000 children!

Our team filled just under four SUVs with donations last year, and this year we’re aiming for five.

“Since commencing our partnership with Toys for Tots a decade ago, we’ve seen the program grow to touch the lives of so many children in the area,” said Annie Dawkins, Building Manager at MSRE. “Each year we receive extraordinary feedback from those who donate about the difference we are making in our community. It’s why we continue to work with Toys for Tots year after year.”

Our team’s favorite part of the program is how it invokes the feeling of being a kid again. Browsing the shelves at the toy store brings back childhood memories of writing letters to Santa. Choosing a toy to donate reminds us of the excitement we felt when we opened that one gift we really wanted.

By remembering that joy, we are reminded why we donate. Every child deserves happiness during the most joyful season of the year. Likewise, parents facing hard times should never feel the burden of being unable to gift their children something that will make them smile – but when they do, Toys for Tots is there.

Donate With Us

Please join us in making a donation by dropping off a new, unwrapped toy to any of our participating properties between Dec. 2-6. If you’re interested in volunteering in another way, contact the Marines of Combat Logistics Battalion 23 at 253-720-9858.

We thank you in advance for giving the gift of joy this season.