Second Chance Toys

Second Chance Toys of NYC Toy Donations Mark Earth Day and National Child Abuse Month

 

Jocelyn Goldberg, a 13-year-old Upper East Side student who founded the NY chapter of Second Chance Toys, has organized a citywide toy collection to mark Earth Week and National Child Abuse Month.  Second Chance Toys is an organization that recycles gently used plastic toys by donating them to children in need.  Schools, religious organizations and businesses throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn have mobilized drives to recycle plastic toys which do not biodegrade and often wind up in city landfills.  Donations go to community based organizations serving families in need.

According to Jocelyn, "this drive gives kids a chance to help other kids through a program that focuses on those less fortunate and the environment.  In a large city like NY, there can be a great disparity between those that have and those that don't. It is a great lesson for students to get involved and give up something of their own to help others." 

Plastic toys are being collected and transported to local charities and community shelters by 1-800-GOT-Junk?, a full service junk removal company which has volunteered its trucks for transport.

Many of the of toys collected this week are being donated to the Prospect Family Support Center, a crisis center for women and children from Abused Families.  According to Dona Anderson, Senior Program Associate & Camp Services Coordinator, "Homes for the Homeless provides early on-site childcare and childhood education to over 100 young homeless children every day.  National Child Abuse Month is a special time of year that acknowledges the importance of families and communities working together to prevent child abuse in all its forms".  For more information on Homes for the Homeless programs and services please go to go to http://www.homesforthehomeless.com/

New York Kids Clubs Join Earth Week Toys Collection Efforts

 

For dates and locations click here

Second Chance Toys to Partner With Go Green Expo for Earth Week

 

Second Chance Toys with be conducting a city-wide plastic toys drive fo Earth Week to culminate at the Go Green Expo in New York City. For more information on the Expo go to www.gogreenexpo.com

 

Second Chance Toys Makes a Difference on New York’s Lower East Side

Here are some happy faces from kids in the Educational Alliance’s early childhood program along with toys provided by Second Chance Toys’ holiday toy drive.

 

 

Second Chance Toys Extends the Holiday Gift Giving Spirit into the New Year

 

This week, Second Chance Toys came to New York's Lower East Side with a bounty of toys for The Educational Alliance and its Head Start Program. These gently used plastic toys, most certainly destined for a land fill, have now found a new home. The Educational Alliance is one of the first settlement houses on the Lower East Side. It is a community-based organization offering a wide range of programs that integrate education, social services, arts and recreation throughout Downtown Manhattan. Originally founded to help Eastern European Jews assimilate into American society, it has proven to be an important stepping stone for all that have begun their American journey in Downtown Manhattan. The Educational Alliance now has 80 programs at 32 sites.To help make this all possible, 1-800-GOT-Junk? provides pick-up and transportation from drop-off locations to organizations like The Educational Alliance.

Second Chance Toys & InterContinental’s Barclay New York Hotel Help Energize Drive for City’s Homeless Family Shelters

It’s a blessing that in this economy many are still remembering the less fortunate and are giving generously to make certain Christmas is a wonderful holiday for needy children. 

Thanks to staffers at InterContinental/The Barclay New York Hotel, this year’s Second Chance Toys’ New York City toy drive was a major success.  According to Jocelyn Goldberg, founder of the Second Chance Toys of NYC chapter, “Without their help, this could have been a bleak holiday season for youngsters living in many of the city’s homeless family shelters."

Proceeds from the drive went to Metro Hotel family homeless shelter in Elmhurst, NY. Although, toys were not scheduled to be given out until Christmas, some youngsters got a sneak preview of the bounty of gifts last Monday. 

1-800-GOT-JUNK? generously supplied transportation to make sure no toys were left behind and that each made it to the Metro Hotel family shelter in time for Christmas.  

     

Marks Paneth & Shron LLP Brightens The Holidays For The Needy

Marks Paneth & Shron LLP rallied to bring much needed toys to less fortunate New Yorkers this holiday season.  MP&S partnered with Second Chance Toys to run their 2008 toy drive.  HR Staffers Anne Marshall and Jessica Helf rallied the troops by setting aggressive goals, reminder emails and creating a strong commitment to keeping the giving spirit alive.  The result?  MP&S employees collected a total of 134 used and new toys! 

MP&S, whose origins date back to 1907, is the 28th largest accounting firm in the U.S., and the 15th largest in the New York area.  The company, headquarters in Manhattan, has over 500 employees with additional offices in Westchester, Long Island and the Cayman Islands.

 

 

     

Deepening Economic Woes Don’t Dampen New York City’s Gift Giving Spirits. Business and Residents Step Up.

 

Despite a continuing drone of bad economic news and job losses, New Yorkers on the Upper East Side turned out in droves to support Second Chance Toys’ holiday toy drive. 

 

With the help of Glenwood Management, builder, owner and operator of more than 20 luxury apartment buildings, and Agata & Valentina, purveyor of gourmet & specialty foods, the UES neighborhood came to life this week.  

 

Second Chance Toys rescued nearly 150 gently used plastic toys that most certainly would otherwise have been destined for a local landfill.  Instead, these toys are being recycled through donations to disadvantaged families.  Organizations like Homes for the Homeless, which provides shelter for needy families at 5 NYC locations, is finding a second chance for these non-biodegradable plastics and bringing joy & happiness to needy families at the holidays. 

 

According to Jocelyn Goldberg, founder of the Second Chance Toys’ NYC chapter, "It's touching to see young kids offering up their favorite toys to children they know need them more." 

 

Later this month, big business steps up too with toy drives at Intercontinental Hotels Barclay NY location and Marks Paneth & Shron LLP -- a 500 person regional Accounting & Professional Services firm.  These drives are being integrated into this year’s holiday celebrations in an effort to give back to the community.  1-800-Got-Junk? will provide transportation for donations and deliver toys to their new homes in the NY City area.

Second Chance Toys of NYC Launches Holiday Toy Drive

 

Second Chance Toys is bringing the joy of the holidays to over 1,000 homeless children with its first Thanksgiving toy drive on New York’s Upper East Side.  Proceeds will be donated to Homes for the Homeless serving over 500 homeless families each day at four locations throughout the city.  Homes for the Homeless is the nation's largest provider of residential, education and employment training centers.  Jocelyn Goldberg, 13-year old behind Second Chance Toys of NYC, recruited classmates from her school and their families to run drives at each of their own apartment buildings in the neighborhood.  Jocelyn says, “ I am thrilled to bring cheer to less privileged families and to do something special that will put the “giving” back into Thanksgiving.  I know plastic toys eventually find their way into landfills.  Recycling is good for the environment and it helps preserve our planet.”  To find a new home for your gently used plastic toys, contact Jocelyn at JocelynSCT@nyc.rr.com.

Second Chance Toys of NYC Kicks Off with its First Toy Drive on Upper East Side

In celebration of Earth Day, Second Chance Toys of  NYC held its first toy drive in a 45 story high rise on the Upper East Side.  “They say, charity begins at home, so I decided to reach out to my neighbors and ask for their help” according to Jocelyn Goldberg, founder of the NYC chapter. The 350-unit building houses more than 100 families with children of all ages.  We went door-to-door and collected over 85 plastic toys, many of which were in perfect condition and destined for the scrap heap. “Why not give them a second chance with children who could really use them.’’  Toys are being donated to Homes for the Homeless in the South Bronx. HFH shelters over 630 homeless families with more than 1,200 children each day at five separate sites across New York City.  They provide education, shelter, and training to assist parents and children on their way to long-term stability.  For more information on Second Chance Toys or to donate your gently used plastic toys you can reach Jocelyn by emailing her at JocelynSCT@nyc.rr.com

Second Chance Toys debuts in New York City

First NYC Affiliate Launched by Jocelyn Goldberg

Community service and “giving back” came to life for Jocelyn Goldberg a 7th-Grade Upper East-Sider last winter on a journey to Israel to celebrate the Bar Mitzvah of a close family friend.  Traveling together with a group of 12 families (60 in total), Jocelyn had the opportunity to visit the birthplace of her ancestors and learn Israel’s magnificent history.  Instrumental to her trip was learning about charity and the real meaning of “mitzvah” -- a Hebrew word that has come to express the act of human kindness.  While there, Jocelyn helped raise money for orphans at Yeshiva Kiryat Arba in the holy city of Hebron in the West bank near the Jordanian border.   She also helped prepare lunch for over 350 poor and homeless in Jerusalem at the Hazon Yeshaya Soup Kitchen.  The trip kindled a passion for reaching out and helping the needy which she brought home with her to New York City.

Now, Jocelyn is turning 13 and has chosen Second Chance Toys as a way she can do a mitzvah for under privileged children.  By establishing the NYC Affiliate, Jocelyn says she “hopes to bring the gift of joy and happiness to less fortunate children here in New York City”.

While Jocelyn is not in school, or finding new toy donations, she enjoys soccer, ice hockey, figure skating, horseback riding and preparing gourmet dinners for friends and family at home. 

To donate your gently used plastic toys you can reach Jocelyn by emailing her at JocelynSCT@nyc.rr.com.