September 21, 2024 • 5 mins
Each and every holiday season, the Dover, NH Fire Department is able to hand out toys to hundreds of families thanks to the generous gifts to the department's Toy Bank, which has been running for decades. Now, this year's holiday mission is in jeopardy due to a devastating flood. Firefighter and paramedic Mike Kilday joins the show this week to talk about how you can help.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:07):
From WBZ News Radio in Boston. This is New England Weekend.
Each week we come together and talk about all the
topics important to you and the place where you live.
It is so good to be back with you again
this week. I'm Nicole Davis. If you're a bit of
an early bird, I cannot relate unfortunately, but you might
be starting your crafting, planning, shopping, whatever for the holidays
(00:27):
at this point. Over at the Dover, New Hampshire Fire Department,
that for them is a full time job. It's an
all year thing. For decades, they have been running a
special toy bank to make sure that every family in
need in town can provide for kids for Christmas. But unfortunately,
this year that mission is in jeopardy. They need your
help to make sure these kids can get some toys.
(00:47):
Let's talk about what happened and how you can assist.
Mike Kilday is here on the show. He is a
firefighter and paramedic at the Dover, New Hampshire Fire Department. Mike,
thanks for the time. What exactly went on here? What happened?
Speaker 2 (01:00):
The toy bank started a little or forty years ago
with a firefighter here at Dover. I just had the
idea of trying to go to a store and collect
toys and hand deliver them to all the kids that
need it. So that started. A name was Chuck Mones,
like I said, he started doing that in the late
seventies I believe, And then the next two people kind
(01:21):
of took the project on, where Richard Driscoll and mac
McLean and they brought to the program where it's at now,
where we're doing one hundred and twenty five families roughly
every year. So the toy bank has drastically grown over
those forty years and the first time that we've had
to start from scratch. So every year we just get
(01:43):
more and more toys donated. And like said, when we
lose every toy, now start fresh.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
Yeah, I mean, that's a lot of toys you need.
And let's talk about why you had to start from scratch.
What went wrong here?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
August fourth, we had where we housed the toys, a
water pipe broke and it flooded our facility with about
six inches of water and unfortunately came from above us,
so all the toys that were even off the ground
still got soaked.
Speaker 1 (02:11):
Oh no, And how many toys are we talking about?
Here hundreds thousands, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
I would say I would say close in the thousands.
I mean, we're estimating that we lost thirty to forty
grand worth of toys in this one incident.
Speaker 1 (02:25):
Oh my gosh. We're just a few months out from Christmas,
so this kind of means you're in a bit of
a crunch time situation.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
Oh yeah, absolutely. So what we tend to do is
the toys that we got from last year are the
toys that we tend to use and wrap and hand
out to the kids for this year. So we don't
have that surplus right now. So now, luckily we've gotten
toys donated. We're not quite there, but there's no worry
(02:52):
that we're not going to be able to fill what
we usually do.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
Well, that's good, but yeah, you could definitely stand to
build up that surplus and I get that bank going.
So how has the community responded to all this?
Speaker 2 (03:04):
The community has been absolutely outstanding. As soon as the
pressure he's got put out, we've had everyone either donating
money or just ringing the doorbell and dropping off toys.
Just the other day, we even had a middle schooler
had a lemonade stand and donated all the funds from
that lumnae stand. She came in and dropped it off.
(03:25):
So just seeing everyone work together and helping us out.
And it's not every day that the fire department has
for help, so we're not used to that. But when
we did it, it's awesome to see the community come together.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
Well, you do so much for us, it's the least
we can do. So, I mean, how can people get
these toys? Well, first and foremost, what kind of toys
you're looking for here? Specifically? Is there anything you really
need that you don't have or is it just anything?
Speaker 2 (03:50):
The toys we're looking for are new and unwrapped toys
ages from newborn up to twelve years.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
Old, Okay, and it doesn't matter what it is or
you know, what type of toy, just anything.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
So yeah, anything like I said that, a newborn to
twelve years old, We'll we'll take.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
It, all, right, sweet? And how can people get these
to you?
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yeah, so they can go to any of the fire
stations and just drop them off. We can't promise someone
will be at the fire station obviously, because obviously we
do not one calls, right, Yeah, so it can't be
a little tricky to kind of get us sometimes. But
if you go to the North end, which is the
fire station on two sixty two sixth Street there in Dover,
(04:31):
there's usually someone in the front office there from eight
to five during the week, okay.
Speaker 1 (04:36):
And what if somebody just wants to donate money instead,
they can't get to you, or they're listening here in
Massachusetts and they just want to send you money instead.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
So absolutely we can. You can mail a check either
to any one of the fire station addresses like that
to sixty two sixth Street and that can get to us.
We also have a PO box, so that PO box
that's going to be Pielbox one zero zero four that's Dover,
New Hampshire zero three eight.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
Two one, okay, and who should they make the checkout to.
Speaker 2 (05:08):
Check payable can go to the Dover Firefighters Charitable Association
memo Toy Bank.
Speaker 1 (05:13):
All right, beautiful, Mike, thank you so much for your time,
and we will get the word out there for you
and hopefully the toy Bank gets back up and running
before the holiday season when you get to go help
those families out.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Absolutely, have a.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Safe and healthy weekend, and please join me again next
week for another edition of the show. I'm Nicole Davis
from WBZ news Radio on iHeartRadio
From WBZ News Radio in Boston. This is New England Weekend.
Each week we come together and talk about all the
topics important to you and the place where you live.
It is so good to be back with you again
this week. I'm Nicole Davis. If you're a bit of
an early bird, I cannot relate unfortunately, but you might
be starting your crafting, planning, shopping, whatever for the holidays
(00:27):
at this point. Over at the Dover, New Hampshire Fire Department,
that for them is a full time job. It's an
all year thing. For decades, they have been running a
special toy bank to make sure that every family in
need in town can provide for kids for Christmas. But unfortunately,
this year that mission is in jeopardy. They need your
help to make sure these kids can get some toys.
(00:47):
Let's talk about what happened and how you can assist.
Mike Kilday is here on the show. He is a
firefighter and paramedic at the Dover, New Hampshire Fire Department. Mike,
thanks for the time. What exactly went on here? What happened?
Speaker 2 (01:00):
The toy bank started a little or forty years ago
with a firefighter here at Dover. I just had the
idea of trying to go to a store and collect
toys and hand deliver them to all the kids that
need it. So that started. A name was Chuck Mones,
like I said, he started doing that in the late
seventies I believe, And then the next two people kind
(01:21):
of took the project on, where Richard Driscoll and mac
McLean and they brought to the program where it's at now,
where we're doing one hundred and twenty five families roughly
every year. So the toy bank has drastically grown over
those forty years and the first time that we've had
to start from scratch. So every year we just get
(01:43):
more and more toys donated. And like said, when we
lose every toy, now start fresh.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
Yeah, I mean, that's a lot of toys you need.
And let's talk about why you had to start from scratch.
What went wrong here?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
August fourth, we had where we housed the toys, a
water pipe broke and it flooded our facility with about
six inches of water and unfortunately came from above us,
so all the toys that were even off the ground
still got soaked.
Speaker 1 (02:11):
Oh no, And how many toys are we talking about?
Here hundreds thousands, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
I would say I would say close in the thousands.
I mean, we're estimating that we lost thirty to forty
grand worth of toys in this one incident.
Speaker 1 (02:25):
Oh my gosh. We're just a few months out from Christmas,
so this kind of means you're in a bit of
a crunch time situation.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
Oh yeah, absolutely. So what we tend to do is
the toys that we got from last year are the
toys that we tend to use and wrap and hand
out to the kids for this year. So we don't
have that surplus right now. So now, luckily we've gotten
toys donated. We're not quite there, but there's no worry
(02:52):
that we're not going to be able to fill what
we usually do.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
Well, that's good, but yeah, you could definitely stand to
build up that surplus and I get that bank going.
So how has the community responded to all this?
Speaker 2 (03:04):
The community has been absolutely outstanding. As soon as the
pressure he's got put out, we've had everyone either donating
money or just ringing the doorbell and dropping off toys.
Just the other day, we even had a middle schooler
had a lemonade stand and donated all the funds from
that lumnae stand. She came in and dropped it off.
(03:25):
So just seeing everyone work together and helping us out.
And it's not every day that the fire department has
for help, so we're not used to that. But when
we did it, it's awesome to see the community come together.
Speaker 1 (03:36):
Well, you do so much for us, it's the least
we can do. So, I mean, how can people get
these toys? Well, first and foremost, what kind of toys
you're looking for here? Specifically? Is there anything you really
need that you don't have or is it just anything?
Speaker 2 (03:50):
The toys we're looking for are new and unwrapped toys
ages from newborn up to twelve years.
Speaker 1 (03:56):
Old, Okay, and it doesn't matter what it is or
you know, what type of toy, just anything.
Speaker 2 (04:02):
So yeah, anything like I said that, a newborn to
twelve years old, We'll we'll take.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
It, all, right, sweet? And how can people get these
to you?
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yeah, so they can go to any of the fire
stations and just drop them off. We can't promise someone
will be at the fire station obviously, because obviously we
do not one calls, right, Yeah, so it can't be
a little tricky to kind of get us sometimes. But
if you go to the North end, which is the
fire station on two sixty two sixth Street there in Dover,
(04:31):
there's usually someone in the front office there from eight
to five during the week, okay.
Speaker 1 (04:36):
And what if somebody just wants to donate money instead,
they can't get to you, or they're listening here in
Massachusetts and they just want to send you money instead.
Speaker 2 (04:44):
So absolutely we can. You can mail a check either
to any one of the fire station addresses like that
to sixty two sixth Street and that can get to us.
We also have a PO box, so that PO box
that's going to be Pielbox one zero zero four that's Dover,
New Hampshire zero three eight.
Speaker 1 (05:04):
Two one, okay, and who should they make the checkout to.
Speaker 2 (05:08):
Check payable can go to the Dover Firefighters Charitable Association
memo Toy Bank.
Speaker 1 (05:13):
All right, beautiful, Mike, thank you so much for your time,
and we will get the word out there for you
and hopefully the toy Bank gets back up and running
before the holiday season when you get to go help
those families out.
Speaker 2 (05:24):
Absolutely, have a.
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Safe and healthy weekend, and please join me again next
week for another edition of the show. I'm Nicole Davis
from WBZ news Radio on iHeartRadio
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