35th Open Door Annual 'Give A Toy And Share The Joy' Could Use A Hand

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — One of the Hudson Valley's most enduring and uplifting holiday traditions is gearing up for the season and all of Santa's helpers behind the effort to spread cheer could use your help.

The Open Door Family Medical Center announced that it will be celebrating its 35th annual "Give a Toy and Share the Joy" holiday toy drive this season. Every holiday season, the health care center distributes over 3,500 new toys, valued at $20 per toy, to young patients at its six medical centers. The drive is sustained entirely by donations from the community.

"We encourage local companies, individuals, families, and schools to support the campaign by sponsoring toy drives or making donations through mid-December," said Jane Levy, senior manager of volunteer programs at Open Door. “In addition to new toys, we provide our families with holiday gift bundles that include books, pajamas and stocking stuffers. It truly brightens the holiday season for these youngsters and their families.”

The annual tradition began in 1987 with a local family collecting 100 toys at their holiday party to distribute to Open Door patients in Ossining. Today, Open Door patients register for a time to pick up their holiday bags on a designated day in December at its sites in Mamaroneck, Port Chester, Mount Kisco, Sleepy Hollow, Ossining and Brewster.

For this year’s drive, volunteers are needed to sort and distribute toys. For additional information on supporting the drive, contact Levy by emailing this address or calling 914-502-1468.

Open Door Family Medical Center celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. Its’ mission to build healthier communities through accessible, equitable, culturally competent health care has remained consistent since being founded as a free clinic in Ossining in 1972. In addition to its medical centers, Open Door runs nine School-Based Health Centers in the Port Chester, Ossining and Webutuck school districts, a mobile dental van in Mount Kisco, and a dental practice in Saugerties. Open Door's healthcare and wellness programs serve nearly 63,000 individual patients who might not otherwise have access to quality healthcare in Westchester, Putnam, Dutchess and Ulster counties. As a pioneer Federally Qualified Health Center, Open Door provides more than 300,000 patient visits annually and offers integrated services and a holistic approach to building healthier communities. Primary medical care, dental care, integrated behavioral health care, clinical nutrition, wellness programs, and chronic disease management are the foundation of its clinical programs. Find out more here.