Toy Drives

This holiday season, it took part in two different toy drives. One was run by 360 Entertainment, who hosted a drive at On Your Toes on December 15th. The other was an ongoing drive run by Carla Murino. I had a lot of fun participating in both.

360 Entertainment, owned by Anthony Muscat, is a DJ Company that I have worked with for many years. He teamed up with On Your Toes for this year's toy drive, so I obviously had to be involved! On December 15th, the toy drive took place right outside of On Your Toes Dancewear. We collected toys to be donated to local families affected by Hurricane Sandy. I spent the day on Lincoln Avenue, waving at people driving by, signing autographs, taking pictures, collecting toys, and getting people to write their "Letters to Santa" for Macy's "Million Reasons to Believe" Campaign!

It was a day filled with Christmas cheer. Some families stopped by and, after asking what we were doing, told us that they were affected by the hurricane. It was rewarding to see the joy on the children's faces when they were able to pick out a toy for themselves.

With the help of  360 Entertainment, On You Toes, and the community, over 100 toys were collected. Anthony brought what was left of them to rescue centers so that every child on Staten Island could have an amazing Christmas day!

The second toy drive that I participated in was one that has been done for the past two years by Carla Murino. Her son, Vincent, was born right by Christmas, so every year Carla collects toys to donate to the Ronald McDonald House in NYC. Having visited the house, myself, I know what an inspiring place this is. This is why I wanted to get involved in helping her.

My Aunt Jackie is a teacher in New Jersey. I asked if she and her class could help me get some toys for the Ronald McDonald House and they definitely pulled through! We had two bags of toys that I was able to bring with me to Carla's house so that she and Vincent could deliver them. I am so happy that the kids at Ronald McDonald will have gifts for Christmas.

Thank you 360 Entertainment, On Your Toes, and Carla for everything you do to help others. An additional thank you to my mom, Aunt Jackie, and everyone who donated for giving someone a better holiday season. It was a pleasure to do this with you all! Thank you!