Toys For Tots Ride the Rails from Georgetown to Lewes set Nov. 4
The Lewes Public Library will play host to a unique experience from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 4, in support of local Toys For Tots events. Children attending the library's Special Saturday Story Time at 10:30 a.m. will be treated afterward to a hands-on show-and-tell event provided by the North American Rail Car Operators Association's railroad motor cars. Lea Rosell, assistant director of youth services, said, "The children truly enjoyed the holiday spirit of giving gifts to others and seeing the motor cars arrive during last year's event." The Shoreline Garden Railroad Club will have a display inside the library featuring large-scale, high-tech train models with lights, smoke, and digital sound for children and their parents to enjoy. The Shoreline Railroad Club was started in 2002 and has members from all over Delaware and the Eastern Shore of Maryland.
Motorcars will travel the rails from Georgetown, leaving the Georgetown Post Office around 8:30 a.m. and arriving at the library around 11. The cars will travel along Route 9 with the intent of gathering toys for the Toys for Tots campaign The United States Marine Corps Reserve first organized the Toys for Tots program in 1947, with the goal of donating toys to needy children who might not otherwise have toys for a merry Christmas. Each event participant is asked to donate at least one unwrapped toy for a boy or girl as part of their entrance fee, and all remaining funds collected in excess of expenses are also contributed.
Sadly, 2017 will be the last year for this event. The rail trackage in Lewes is scheduled to be removed. Delaware Coast Line Railroad President Dan Herholdt said, "We hope to make this final event a grand success and also commemorate the end of a long-term relationship between Lewes and our railroad. This final run will be known as the Michael D. Herholdt Sr. memorial Toys For Tots run after my father, who saved the line from abandonment in the 1980s. It is my hope that the people in Lewes and Georgetown will attend this event and support disadvantaged children, and also serve the community as a means to celebrate the end of an era."
"Boomer John" Schmidt, NARCOA member and event organizer, said, "NARCOA will conduct two separate excursions during the weekend of Nov. 4: One on Saturday on the Delaware Coast Line Railroad from Georgetown to Lewes, and one on Sunday (Nov. 5) on the Wilmington & Western Railroad from Hockessin to Greenbank."
Ted Bennicoff, Sussex County Toys For Tots coordinator, said, "I was there last year and was overwhelmed by the community's support, but I am saddened that 2017 will be the last year this event will occur. We in the Toys For Tots campaign encourage all holiday-spirited people in both Lewes and Georgetown to team with us, NARCOA and the DCL to make this last event a memorable one."
The public is invited to join in the fun at the Lewes Public Library Nov. 4: Bring an unwrapped toy contribution for a boy or girl, and see and touch the motorcars. For more information, call the library during business hours at 302-645-2733.
