The Kiwanis Club of East Meadow is on track to complete 2025 with a successful season of holiday-themed events, continuing classic traditions and making changes that reflect the needs of friends and neighbors.
The club collected toys for one of its final annual events. The Secret Snowflake Toy Drive assembled a large collection of unwrapped toys from individual community members and local businesses: Coldwell Banker American Homes; A&C Pest Management; Rosenthal, Curry and Kranz LLP; Club Pilates East Meadow; Borrelli’s, Skinner Agency and Ross L. Schiller and Associates P.C.
The toy drive is co-chaired by Kiwanis Club President Donna Goldstein, along with past presidents Jennifer Reinhardt and Diane Krug.
“We need a lot of toys and gift cards,” Goldstein said. “We’d love it if people in the community could contact us or share or drop off at our many locations.”
Goldstein is the library secretary of Barnum Woods Elementary School; she is in a position where the circumstances of young people are made apparent, and how receiving care connects with them.
“They’re children,” she said. “They shouldn’t have to know how hard life is, and it’s good that they can have something.”
Within the school, she sees both the need for aid and the spirit of generosity flourishing in students. Students in Service and Leadership Programs around the district contributed to the toy drive, according to Goldstein.
“All of a sudden, all of our clubs are really stepping it up,” she said. “It’s so wonderful to see children as young as third graders all the way up to high schoolers seeing this and being such an active part of helping their community.”
Families in need are identified by working with the district’s social workers, who are then put onto the Kiwanis’ list of gift recipients.
“We work really hard every year to ensure that all families in our school district are able to celebrate the holidays,” said Reinhardt. “This event means a lot to our club. Each year it just continues to bring a smile to our face because it brings a smile to so many other people’s faces.”
The annual toy drive has been a staple of the Kiwanis Club’s annual traditions — even throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. In the past, the club added to the program by partnering with local restaurateur Frank Borrelli to combine his communal Christmas dinner with their toy distribution. This year, the drive will offer food for the hungry in the form of bags of groceries and gift cards.
“It used to be a breakfast, and then it evolved into what it is today, which is the food and the gifts,” Krug explained. “This way each family can have it in their own home. We supply the food and some food and gifts to the children.”
In every version of the Kiwanis Club’s annual festivities, one thing stays the same: the value of goodwill and friendly faces.
“When they come to pick up the food and the gifts, they are so very thankful for what we’re doing,” Krug said. “That makes all the work worthwhile.”
The club accepts contributions through other means, such as monetary donations and direct individual contributions. The materials collected from the drive will be distributed on Dec. 20. To make a direct financial contribution, the Kiwanis Club is accepting donations on Venmo via code BOF-EMK.
To schedule a pickup of unwrapped new toys, contact Reinhardt at 516-351-9891.
“Without all the donations, this event wouldn’t be possible,” she said, expressing gratitude to all who have contributed to the toy drive so far.
Coming next is the Kiwanis Club Holiday Party on Dec. 11, offering music and karaoke to participants in addition to a multi-course meal, celebrating the year’s successes. To learn more about this and future events, visit k03823.site.kiwanis.org.
