Owensboro is serving as the logistical hub for the massive toy drive — officials estimate upwards of 200,000 toys — underway to benefit families in western Kentucky affected by the devastating storms last weekend. Officials said they want to do anything possible to help make the most of Christmas time and bring a little joy to those who are hurting.
Kentucky State Police Trooper Corey King went to Mayfield the day after the storm.
“I went and stood in the middle of Mayfield,” he said Thursday. “I know Mayfield very well because I’m actually from Graves County. I would not have known I was in Mayfield. The town is completely decimated. It’s toothpicks. Literally everything is shredded. You would never know where you were at.”
Working on site alongside the governor’s office in Mayfield on Saturday, King helped get the ball rolling on the toy drive.
“During the conversations, when (Kentucky First Lady Britainy Beshear) decided we would want a toy drive, it really put us in overdrive on what we need to do to make this happen,” King said. “We knew that the outpouring was gonna be significant.”
That’s where Owensboro came into play. King knew he had resources and contacts here, so he offered Owensboro as the main hub for packages and donations. He made it clear Owensboro is not actually a drop-off location, though.
“It is simply a hub for the trucks to come here to give it to us, let us sort through it and get it to the affected areas,” King said. “It makes sense because this is the farthest west KSP post that has the least amount of impact.”
By about 4 p.m. Friday, two semi-truck loads of donations had been dropped off. King expected a couple more by the end of the day, and even more over the weekend.
The plan is to sort through everything — volunteers on site are removing any bags that donations came in, as well as making sure the items can actually be accepted — over the weekend and to start sending it out Monday.
King said at least five shelters have been identified, and most of those state parks.
“They have cottages and rooms for a lot of these displaced families,” King said. “But this is also going to be like an open store for families not staying there to drive there to get what they need.”
King said no more toys are needed at this time. Anyone still looking to help is asked to donate gift cards or money. Many agencies recommend donating to the Team Western Kentucky Tornado Relief Fund.
King said they’re expecting trucks from as far away as Chicago, as well as North Carolina and Oklahoma.
“I’m not turning any of them away,” he said. “We’ll make sure that kids will get plenty of toys to help them get away from what they went through. If this is one way we can distract them and make something of this Christmas, that’s what we’ll do.”
