Tarrytown Police Gifts are Still Giving

While the holiday season may be coming to an end, some children are still ecstatic about the gifts they received from the Tarrytown Police Department.

Just before Christmas, Police Chief Scott Brown was on hand to deliver a collection of toys to the boys and girls of the Hawthorne Country Day School.

"All the kids are still wearing the clothes they received, even today. They aren't taking them off yet," said Brad Fredman, Director of Athletics and Music at the school.

The Hawthorne Country Day School, located on Bradhurst Avenue in Valhalla, provides education to individuals between the ages of three and 21 who are challenged by severe developmental disabilities, autism, and other behavioral disorders.

The annual toy drive is often the brightest point in the year for many of the students.

"For a lot of our kids this is the only holiday gift they get," Fredman said. "We have about 200 kids and each of them gets to go home with their hands full."

The event was started 19 years ago by Valhalla-resident Daryl Bleich as a way to honor his mother who died in 1991.

"My mother always used to say that charity begins at home," Bleich said.

Since starting the program, the aim has been to secure three gifts for each child every holiday season. Donations usually come in from private individuals and local businesses, but the Tarrytown Police have taken the drive to a new level.

"I know a lot of people, and of all the contacts and people I get to contribute to the toy drive, the Tarrytown police always come in and double everything we collect," Bleich said.

The department organized and collected donated toys in and around Tarrytown for the Hawthorne students; all in all, it was enough to fill an ambulance.

"They literally filled an ambulance with toys, like to the ceiling," Fredman said. "It was just amazing."

There were more than 700 gifts handed out at the school, including bicycles, musical instruments, games and more. Roughly half of those gifts were collected by the Tarrytown police, Fredman estimated.

"They [the department] kind of epitomize the giving season," Fredman said.

As for the students of the school, Fredman said many are eager to take up the police department on another offer.

"We were all invited to do a tour of the police station, so we're all really looking forward to doing that," he said.