LOCAL NEWS | On Tuesday, December 5 the unthinkable happened. An area non-profit suffered a devastating fire that destroyed hundreds of toy and non-perishable food donations meant for the less fortunate this holiday season. And now they need the surrounding counties’ help to save Christmas.
The Coffee County Rescue Squad and The Gene Taylor-Steve Graves Christmas Foundation collects donations each year to make sure no child or family gets left behind. On Tuesday, the building that houses these donation suffered a fire, essentially destroying hundreds of dolls, puzzles, games, Lego sets, and other toys housed inside. Over 130 families depend on these donations to keep the magic of Christmas alive.
Now they and the community are hustling to replace those donations before the holiday arrives and Moore County citizens can help.
Local John LaCook is spearheading a local effort to help. He and the Metro Moore County Fire & Rescue will host a toy drive this Saturday, December 9 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Majors Boulevard Fire House.
“We hope to send a full trailer to help them out. We will also accept cash and checks made to them to assist replace gifts that had already been purchased,” stated LaCook. “They go above and beyond to provide mutual aid when we need them so let’s show Coffee County the love and support that is shown in Moore County daily.”
Simply purchase a new, unwrapped toy or several and drop off at the event on Saturday in Lynchburg. You can also drop off gifts before then at Lynchburg Gifts& More located on the Lynchburg Square.
If you can’t shop and can’t make it on Saturday, you can also make a monetary donation, by clicking here. The deadline to make donations so that volunteers have time to sort and reorganize them is next Thursday, December 14.
Much of the regional first responders fire and rescue equipment was also damaged in the fire. We’ll keep you posted on how locals can also help with efforts to replace that equipment. •
{The Lynchburg Times is the only locally-owned and locally-operated community newspaper in Lynchburg, Tennessee. We cover local news and events as well as the tourism and whiskey industries in southern, middle Tennessee.}