Donate Used Toys Today: Pass on the Joy!

Based on the United States Census Bureau data, approximately 39.2 million children under 10 exist in America. Out of these, 5.65 million children are living in extreme poverty. So are we able to sense the necessity of why to donate used toys in today’s time?

Most of the toys in the commercial market (around 80 to 90% approx) are made from a plastic material; the rest are made from other materials like wood, metal, fabric, and rubber. In this article, we will discuss where you can donate used toys.

Where to Donate Used Toys?

The number of places to donate used toys will likely be over 1000 since they include national organizations, national organizations, and other regional or local non-profits, churches, and community centers.

Why shall we donate used toys? This is the question of compassion, empathy, and social ethics before jumping to toy donation places. A community initiative, type of organization, and location are crucial factors to consider when looking for anything to donate.

You can also consider some hospitals, local non-profit organizations, shelters, nearby orphanage groups, low-income families, churches, and other community centers for kids, where they usually accept toy donations.

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However, you do not need to hustle about where to donate used toys. Here we have come up with a complete list of organizations that accepts toys for kids with a comprehensive guide.

1. Toys for Tots

• Around 652 million toys have already been distributed, and 291 million children have been supported to this date; this toys for tots program is run by the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, which collects and distributes the toys to low-income and fewer fortune children during the season of holiday.
• It recently celebrated its 75th anniversary in the 2022 holiday season. Not even $1 of your donations goes to the organization’s salaries and other workforce costs. Your contributions will have transparency and authenticity with their unique virtual toybox donation program.
• You can check their Fund Rising Expenditure on their website, which is a 97:3 program-to-support ratio, i.e., 97.1% fund foes to program, 2.3% to fundraising, and 0.6% to overhead.

2. Goodwill

• Your donated toys will be sold out to fund their free job training and placement program, so you see where your donation lands differently for society’s overall growth. In addition, more than 101 million people in the United States donate their stuff regularly, which signifies the trust and authenticity of this platform.
• This nationwide organization has three easy steps to donate all kinds of stuff, including toys. It is simple: Gather your property, Check it Over, and Go to Goodwill. You can easily find your nearby Goodwill center.
• They offer two donation bins to aid profit and non-profit groups, one which clarifies the benefiting organization name and the other does not include a clear mission statement. Find the Goodwill Donation Center near you here. You can get the nearest donation center with the help of their online locator, or you can also search by zip, city, or street.

3. Ronald McDonald House Charities

• They have temporary housing facilities for low-income families with children undergoing medical treatment. Your donated toys are given to them for their relief play. They directly influence the health and well-being of children and their families by providing more than 1.5 million overnight stays each year and helping them improve their quality of life.
• It is a four-star accreditated charity; whenever you visit a McDonald’s restaurant, you can round up your  total payment at the counter or drive-thru by choosing “Round-Up for RMHC.”
• Around $50 million U.S. dollars were donated by customers at different McDonald’s restaurants last year. Each dollar you pay gets added to the total contribution to charity. You can also participate there as a volunteer to contribute more to society.

4. Stuffed Animals For Emergencies

• Stuffed Animals for Emergencies (SAFE) is run entirely by volunteers, and 100% of your donations go to children in need. They collect stuffed animals, blankets, books, child clothing, and baby items that include toys.
• You can also choose to be their chapter member, where you can collect all the donations from people, clean them and find people who need them in your local area. You can also participate in their different SAFE Drives and contribute to society.
• Toys that the children do not play with are considered new donations by the stuffed animals for emergencies, whereas all other donations are considered gently used.

5. Freecycles

• You can give and get stuff in your town on this entirely non-profit organization called freecycle, which has become quite popular for daily lifestyle stuff, including kids’ toys.
• They are more than 10,583,532 members currently on this platform; you can directly donate to freecycles here.
• An entire network of volunteers across the state ignites the passion and drive to contribute to societal growth and promotes the foster care of poor children.

While cleaning up the house pre and post-festivals, you find a variety of things that you no longer use; although you may have emotional needs attached to your old toys, which is appreciated as well, you can find places where to donate used toys here.

Numerous other organizations and charity platforms also accept used toy donations. You can contact or mail them or physically visit their office to deliver those used toys for children, which is often the case most welcoming.

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Where to Donate Kids Toys?

Several other charity groups and organizations collect the children’s toys. You can donate gently used toys even if they are not entirely fresh but useless to your children.

• The Salvation Army
  • You must find their drop-off location on their website. They usually accept toy donations. They either collect and sell the toys or pull the different fundraising programs.
• Local shelters and children’s centers
  • Multiple local shelters try to collect used toys from people who want to donate gently used toys. You can check out many children’s centers and toy stations in your area.
• Local schools and daycare centers
  • Many schools do not want to spend extra on expensive toys and might want to collect donations from wealthy people. Other children’s day play centers also would like to receive the toys for free.

Generally, the donation rules are the same everywhere, but it is safe to check with the agencies and organizations if they have any special criteria. To donate used toys, you don’t have to go through lengthy procedures or paperwork. It is relatively simple and easy to apply for the donation.

Remember, your donation may decline if your toys are not in good condition. Hence, you should check the toys before donating them. The organizations then give these donated toys to the needy and less fortunate children.

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Process: How to Donate Gently Used Toys?

In this article, we’ve briefly listed the organizations where to donate kids’ toys; you must find them in the sequence above. However, if you still have a hustle about the donation process, you can get it here.

• Try to gather your old and unused toys, which might be older. Sort them out, and please ensure they are in good usable condition. Broken, damaged, or worn-out toys might not be accepted.
• Please clean the toys thoroughly and sanitize them well. Please ensure the toys are ready to be used and don’t disappoint the children, project their working life.
• You can now find nearby community groups, children’s centers, play stations, or non-profit organizations. We have listed the name in this article, and you can visit their site directly and check your slots in where to donate kids’ toys.
• Once you locate your donation organization and decide to contribute to their kids’ program, pack your toys in proper conditions with suitable boxing and arrange the pick-up or drop-off to the organization by yourself.
• Some countries also have tax deductibles on donations; based on where you locate, you can claim tax deductions and obtain the donation receipt.

Read the specific guideline provided by the organization where you’re donating toys. For different organizations, their policies and terms and conditions may vary.

Donate Used Toys to Orphanage Near Me

According to the Children’s Bureau, a federal agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, approximately 442,000 children in the United States live in foster care. However, a small percentage of these children live in orphanages.

Multiple platforms in the United States through which you can donate used toys to orphanages. However, it would be challenging to find the specific orphanage to donate the toys; you can get the quick list here for the donation.

You must note that the usage of orphanages has declined significantly over the years. Child care has shifted towards a more family-based formate of child care, such as foster care, kinship, and adoption, that might replace donation instead of donating used toys to orphanages.

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Conclusion

In this article, we have briefly discussed the different organizations where you can donate used toys and the process of donating gently used toys. We also discussed the shift from orphanage to foster care and child adoption.

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