Community groups come together to host toy drive

CLIO— Giving back to the community is one way that the young men behind the clothing line New Dimension stay connected to Marlboro County. Jordan Ray and Elijah Reid hosted a toy drive at Clio Elementary/Middle School last week in partnership with the Marlboro County Sheriff’s Office and Clio OPERA.

“We wanted to give back to Marlboro County,” Ray said. “When we were little people didn’t really do toy drives and back-to-school drives. So, we wanted to give back to the kids and bring the Christmas spirit.”

Reid agreed. “It’s not too many people who did stuff like this when we were growing up, so to put a smile on a kid’s face is really big for us.”

Reid and Ray said the toy drive wouldn’t have been a success without the support of their coworkers, friends, and community members.

Interim Sheriff Larry McNeil helped to set up the toy drive in the school’s gym and said it was a great chance for the sheriff’s office to partner with some great people.

“I was asked to be a sponsor with a good group of people who have an interest in the community and we were able to be a part of that. We were able to partner with a trucking company that was willing to talk with us about getting some of the toys we needed and they came in about two weeks ago with quite a few toys,” McNeil said.

Damien Johnson of the Clio OPERA organization found the partnership to be a great opportunity and something needed for the community.

“We’ve suffered a lot and it means a lot to provide toys and not just toys but a smile for the kids in the Clio community. This is the time of year that we try to give back. We’re so happy to partner with them,” Johnson said.

Kids were treated to dolls, stuffed animals, books and balls. Those in attendance also had a chance to be entered into a raffle for TVs, tablet computers, and a Playstation 4.