MOUNTLAKE TERRACE — Santa Claus often needs a little help delivering Christmas presents to thousands of children in south Snohomish County.
For more than two decades, Jean Kimes of Lynnwood, 67, answered the call from the North Pole and took charge of organizing the South Snohomish County Toy Shop, a program that provides holiday food and gifts each year to hundreds of low-income families.
She was honored early Saturday when the one-day Toy Shop opened up for its 30th consecutive year, this time at Terrace Park School.
“I just happened to be the facilitator,” said Kimes, a former employee of the state Department of Social and Health Services. “The community did the work and development of it.”
More than 1,100 children in more than 350 families received Christmas presents during Saturday’s event, said Luanne Kunz, community affairs coordinator for YWCA, which took over the Toy Shop program seven years ago. Toys were donated to the program by people, businesses and local organizations.
Families signed up for the event at three food banks in south Snohomish County, but nobody who came Saturday was turned away.
“To be able to supply this much to the community at large is a very big undertaking,” Kunz said. “We always panic at this time of year that we’re not going to have enough, and the community always comes through for us.”
The program was started because low-income residents in south Snohomish County couldn’t easily drive to charitable events in Everett or Seattle. In its first year, the Toy Shop program served about 50 families, Kimes said.
As the needs of south county’s low-income population grew, so did the Toy Shop.
“We kept the philosophy that we wanted to set it up like a store, so the parents could come in like they were buying toys for their children,” Kimes said.
Kimes remains active in her community as a Stephen Ministry volunteer at her church. She’ll always cherish the years she spent organizing the Toy Shop.
“I loved it, it was fun watching it grow,” she said.
Reporter Scott Pesznecker: 425-339-3436 or spesznecker@heraldnet.com.
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