NORTHAMPTON — Rummaging through a cafeteria table covered with children’s books with one hand and carrying a wooden rocking chair in the other, Annie Doran was searching for holiday gifts for her 1-year-old daughter.
Doran wasn’t alone. More than 150 others packed into the cafeteria of Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School early Saturday morning for the city’s eighth annual Holiday Toy Exchange, where over 5,000 toys were donated for community members to pick up for free, organizers said.
“I try to consume as little as I can,” said Doran, a member of the hauling and delivering service Pedal People. “There’s a lot of abundance in the world that’s right in front of our eyes, and this is an amazing event to make it accessible to everybody.”
Doran, of Northampton, was given access to the exchange an hour before the general public as she was part of the first wave of people who donated toys the night before. The event, which is coordinated by the Department of Public Works and the city’s ReUse Committee, is free for anyone in the area to come and get secondhand holiday toys for children. Northampton Public Schools cosponsor the event, which is partially funded through state grants.
For four hours on Friday evening, volunteers helped set up the cafeteria with tables full of donated toys. Larger, more valuable items such as a telescope, a Hot Wheels set and a Wii Mini were placed on a stage to be raffled off to donors on Saturday morning. Any unclaimed toys are donated to local charities after the exchange.
David Starr is a member of the ReUse Committee who said he has volunteered at every toy exchange. Standing by the entrance, Starr checked people’s tickets and encouraged them to enter into the day’s raffle.
The exchange first started when three women decided to swap toys with friends in the community room of the former Feiker School, Starr said. The city took the event over after its first year and expanded it to the larger community, he said.
“I think what’s important about volunteering is that it makes you feel good, it makes you feel like a part of the community,” Starr said.
In the exchange’s first hour, donors made their way through a maze-like area, carrying large reusable bags in the hunt for a gift that their children or relatives have on their holiday lists. The entire room was packed with a variety of toys that included dolls, action figures, outdoor toys, cars and trucks, games, puzzles, arts and crafts and more.
Children are encouraged to stay home as adults search for gifts. Emily Boddy, of Northampton, donated the changing table and high chair of her 6-year-old daughter’s baby doll the night before and said the event was a good way to give during the holidays. Boddy was successful in her search for a Bruder toy truck, which her friend found for Boddy’s 2-year-old son.
“For me, it’s about clearing out my house so that I’m not, during the holiday season, taking in a lot more stuff and not having the space for it. So that’s a big deal for us,” Boddy said.
Xan Burley, of Haydenville, was shopping for her son, nieces and nephews and had never been to the toy exchange before.
“I think it’s really well-organized, and it really aligns with my ideologies of waste-free ecologies,” Burley said.
Mark Teffer, of Easthampton, donated some of his 3-year-old daughter’s used toys the night before but decided to get to the exchange early on Saturday since he had noticed a table marked “action figures” when he donated last year. Teffer managed to find a vintage dollhouse for his daughter, but also snagged a TIE fighter from Star Wars — an item Teffer said he and his daughter might want to play with together.
Teffer said he donates to the exchange because, without continued community support, events like these wouldn’t exist. And when asked why he thought it was important to give during the holidays, Teffer’s answer was simple: “Santa’s watching.”
Michael Connors can be reached at mconnors@gazettenet.com.