St. Cloud Toys for Tots Registration Now In Person Only at Catholic Charities

(KNSI) – Families hoping to get holiday gifts through the St. Cloud area Toys for Tots program at Catholic Charities will have to sign up in person this year.

Registration opened Monday at Catholic Charities Emergency Services, 157 Roosevelt Road. Emergency Services Program Manager Eric Vollen, told KNSI News the process for families to sign up for help is different this year. “We have had online registration in the past. This year, it’s with a new software system, and we are asking for our neighbors to come into our building to register.”

Families can register through December 11th on Mondays and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and on Wednesdays from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Vollen said the goal hasn’t changed, even with the new sign-up process. “We are doing everything we can to help make the holidays brighter for children in our community.”

The program serves children from newborns through age 14 who live with a parent or legal guardian in St. Cloud, Sauk Rapids, Sartell, St. Augusta, St. Stephen, Waite Park, St. Joseph or Rice. There is no income test, but children can’t be enrolled in any other holiday assistance program.

Parents or guardians should bring a valid government-issued photo ID and mail or a bill showing their current address. They’ll also need a birth certificate or government-issued document for each child showing the child’s name, age or date of birth, and the parent’s name. Legal guardians may provide official guardianship documents instead.

Approved families will be assigned a day and time to shop for toys on December 15th, 17th or 22nd.

Catholic Charities has offered the program for more than 20 years, partnering with the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve and the Valhalla Detachment of the Minnesota Marine Corps League. The organization also needs more help from the community. “We need volunteers to help power this important program that we have at the holidays, including in-person registration and for toy distribution.”

New, unwrapped toys can be dropped off at Toys for Tots boxes around the community, and those donations are shared among Catholic Charities and other local Toys for Tots programs, including one at Bethlehem Lutheran Church. To make sure toys go directly to the Catholic Charities program, bring them to Door D at the back of 157 Roosevelt Road, Suite 100, Monday through Friday during regular business hours. Catholic Charities asks people not to leave donations outside the doors.

To volunteer or for more information, click here.

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