It’s time to give back …with toys!
Mattel, Spin Master, and Hasbro are all huge representatives within the toy industry, and this holiday season, they’re all getting in the spirit of giving with different charity projects.
Spin Master and Liberty Entertainment Group, a Toronto hospitality company, reunited for the 10th annual Caring & Sharing Holiday Event. Following a 2-year hiatus due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the two companies hosted an event Dec. 6 that invited more than 800 kids from Children’s Breakfast Club affiliated schools. Each kid got to select two toys, one for them and one to gift. Liberty Entertainment Group provided space and staff, and Magen Boys Entertainment provided music and dancing.
“Cemented as a Spin Master holiday tradition for over a decade, Caring & Sharing embodies the true spirit of giving,” says Tara Deakin, Spin Master’s executive vice president & chief people officer. “We are ecstatic to be back together, celebrating in person, not only bringing joy to the children receiving the toys, but also to our Spin Master volunteers and partners who make the event possible.”
Mattel’s charity team-up featured country music star Tylar Hubbard as well as the First Responders Children’s Foundation, a charity focused on supporting kids who have lost parents in the line of duty. The initiative led to 2,000 toys being delivered to children in the care of Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville, the local Children’s Miracle Network Hospital. The toys came via fire truck, ambulance, and police car.
“The Mattel Children’s Foundation is thrilled to once again partner with the First Responders Children’s Foundation for their amazing holiday Toy Express as part of our Play it Forward holiday giving,” says Nancy Molenda, executive director of Mattel Children’s Foundation. “Even more so, we’re excited that they asked us to donate over 2,000 toys to the incredible Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt to bring the gift of play to these deserving children this holiday season.”
Hasbro also got in on the giving spirit. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of its Global Day of Joy, 6,000 Hasbro employees are volunteering at more than 200 service projects throughout the world. Hasbro will also be donating $2.5 million worth of toys to Toys for Tots, a nonprofit organization run by the Marine Corps Reserve that distributes toys to families that can’t afford them.
Charity initiatives become a big part of the holiday season for the industry, and this year is no exception, with industry bigs and plenty of others working to partner with nonprofits and other organizations in order to donate toys, money, and services to families in need.
