TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Toys For Tots Collection Shifts Into High Gear

ADVERTISEMENT

By BARBARA ROUTEN, Tribune correspondent

Published: November 24, 2007

Updated: 11/22/2007 02:44 am

SUN CITY CENTER - The South Hillsborough County Toys for Tots drive will shift into high gear on Letter Carriers Day on Dec. 1, as residents leave new, unwrapped toys by their mailboxes for U.S. Postal Service workers to collect.

Also on Dec. 1, the Sun City Center Roamin' Oldies Car Club will host its fourth annual Toys for Tots car show from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the Wal-Mart Supercenter parking lot, 4928 S.R. 674, Wimauma. The entry fee is $10 per vehicle, plus a toy.

Admission is free for spectators; however, they "will be allowed to vote for their favorite entry in return for the donation of a toy," said Paul Courter, publicity chairman for the car club. "Last year we filled four vintage trucks with donated toys."

The U.S. Marine Corps Reserve has distributed more than 272 million toys to more than 133 million children nationwide through the Toys for Tots campaign since its founding in 1947. Volunteers collect the toys.

"Many are Marine veterans, like our Leathernecks Club members," Courter said. "Marines ... provide supervision and administrative assistance, distributing collection boxes and posters ... They attend Toys for Tots functions when they can. Unfortunately, none can be spared for our car show. Many from the unit are deployed in harm's way, and the rest are stretched very thin.

"As a member of both the Leathernecks Club and the Roamin' Oldies, I can say that we embrace the Toys for Tots program because it gives us an opportunity to brighten the holidays for children who might otherwise go without the toys that tell them that someone cares about them.

"Sun City Center is pretty much a community without young children, but we see all around us families who simply can't afford the toys all of us remember from our own childhood days. It also gives us a chance to work with and help the U.S. Marine Corps, to which we all owe more than we can repay."
Collection boxes are in stores throughout the area. The Sun City Center Leathernecks Club picks up donations regularly. For information, call Courter at (813) 633-8540.

Art Club To Hold House Tour
SUN CITY CENTER - The Art Club of Sun City Center will hold its 2007 house tour of five Sun City Center homes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 1.

Flower arrangements by the Elegant Gardeners Club of Sun City Center will be on display. Refreshments will be available in the Art Room, 954 Cherry Hills Drive, and adjacent Art Gallery after the tour.

Tickets are $10 and are available from 9 a.m. to noon at the Atrium kiosk, 945 N. Course Lane. For information, call Pam Tipton, (813) 633-0642.

Auction, Buck-A-Bag Sale To Benefit Library

RUSKIN - The Friends of the South Shore Library will sell, auction and practically give away books at a book sale from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 1 at the SouthShore Regional Library, 15816 Beth Shields Way.

A silent auction will feature five leather-bound books with cover text in 22-karat gold published by The Easton Press, a 1910 52-volume set of "Harvard Classics Five Foot Book Shelf" by P.F. Collier & Sons and a 1952 54-volume set of "Great Books of the Western World" by Encyclopedia Britannica.

"The sale will also have a large selection of books sold in the 'Buck A Bag' sale format," said Jim Duffy, the organization's president. "You can fill a bag with your choice of books for $1!"

Proceeds will help provide free literacy, art and environmental programs for patrons of the library.

For information about the sale, the Friends of the Library or book donations, call Duffy, (813) 634-1396.

Nature Writers Group To Meet At Camp Bayou

RUSKIN - People interested in writing about nature may join a quarterly writers meeting beginning at 11:30 a.m. Dec. 1 at Camp Bayou, 4140 24th St. S.E.

Beautyberry Books' Diane Alvarez, a Florida Master Naturalist who has a doctorate in literature, will speak to the group about Florida nature writers.

Some nature writing is nonfiction prose and essays, and some is infused into fiction or poetry. The Peace River Center for Writers in Punta Gorda in 2005 produced an anthology of nature prose and poetry about the 2004 hurricanes called "Summer of the Storms."

All writers are invited to attend.

"Fiction writers, for instance, may need the services of naturalists to provide descriptive details for their Florida settings," said Dolly Cummings, nature center education director. "Those who work with children may want to design writing projects around their shared observation of nature ... and some of our best nature writers turn out to be the journalists who capture those natural experiences for the public. Welcome, all."

For information, call Cummings at (813) 363-5438.

Chamber Sponsors Boat Parade, Chili Cook-Off

RIVERVIEW - The 24th annual Alafia lighted boat parade and chili cook-off will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. Dec. 1 at the Riverview Civic Center, 11020 Park Drive.

Sailors should launch their boats at Williams Park on North Tamiami Trail/U.S. 41 at 4 p.m. and sail upriver to the Rice Creek outfall.

"As boats pass the civic center, they will be judged, with the winner receiving $1,000, second place $300 and third place $200," said Kitty Cunningham, executive director of the Greater Riverview Chamber of Commerce.

For a $5 donation, attendees at the civic center may taste up to 25 different chilies and vote for the Peoples' Choice winner. Refreshments will be sold by members of the VFW Ladies Auxiliary.

"There will be photos with Santa for the children, lots of live music as well," Cunningham said. "Plan now to enter a boat, your favorite chili recipe or just show up and enjoy."

Entry forms and information about the chamber are available by calling (813) 234-5944 or visiting www.riverview chamber.com.

Snippets
Sun City Center Art Club member Nancy Cooper's award-winning miniature watercolors will be on display and for sale in the showcase in the front of the Art Gallery, next to the Art Room, 954 Cherry Hills Drive, through November and December. For information, call Cooper at (813) 633-0084.

Send news and photos of community interest to Barbara Routen at The Tampa Tribune, 505 W. Robertson St., Brandon FL 33511, e-mail neighbors@tampabay.rr .com or call (813) 657-4531.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT