Forest Hills Stadium toy drive collects 1,300 toys for children in need

An annual toy drive hosted by Forest Hills Stadium collected 1,300 toys for local children in need ahead of the holiday season.

The third-annual toy drive, which launched on Nov. 23, was hosted in partnership with Queens Community House, labor union IASTE Local 4 and West Side Tennis Club, which manages Forest Hills Stadium.

More than a dozen Forest Hills bars, restaurants, banks and other businesses participated in the toy drive by acting as drop-off locations throughout the three-week event.

All gifts donated during the collection will be donated to Queens Community House to benefit children up to 13 years old. Organizers had asked anyone interested in donating to the campaign to consider donating STEM-focused toys appropriate for all genders, races and backgrounds.

Photo courtesy of Forest Hills Stadium. — Photo courtesy of Forest Hills Stadium

Organizers had also planned a “big celebration” at Forest Hills Stadium to mark the final day of the collection on Sunday, Dec. 14, but persistent snowfall on Sunday meant that it wasn’t safe to hold on-stage performances at the iconic venue. Instead, organizers pivoted to a smaller indoor celebration in “Santa’s workshop” complete with an appearance from Santa Claus himself.

The indoor celebration also featured craft stations for children, including drawing and ornament decorating tables, while guests were invited to enjoy cider, donuts and hot cocoa.

The launch of the toy drive took place shortly after the launch of the Forest Hills Stadium Community Fund, which will provide grants to various grassroots and community-based organizations. Forest Hills Stadium has committed to an annual investment of $100,000 through the newly-created fund, with the fund’s first grant awarded to ACE cleaning services.

The community fund has also awarded grants to P.S 144 to support the school’s annual Fall Festival and Northwell Health’s Long Island Jewish Forest Hills to support two vaccination clinics offering free vaccines to the local community.

Forest Hills Stadium officials said the fund represents an effort to streamline charitable efforts at the venue and ensure that campaigns were supporting neighborhood-based efforts in a consistent and sustainable manner.

Jason Brandt, General Manager of Forest Hills Stadium, said the fund has created a “mechanism” for Forest Hills Stadium to support “some truly wonderful organizations in the neighborhood.”

Rabbi Avrohom Hecht, executive director of community non-profit Project Lead, which partnered with the stadium for the recent toy drive, said the community fund will allow the non-profit to provide hundreds of families with food packages.

“Project Lead is delighted to partner with the Forest Hills Stadium Community Fund to provide hundreds of needy families with bountiful nutrient dense food packages,” Hecht said in a statement. “We truly appreciate their beneficence.”