MID SOUTH TOYS FOR TOTS 2025

I improved my teamwork and time management skills during this service. I served at the Mid South Toys for Tots service at the Fedex Warehouse by the Memphis airport. I improved how I worked with others, because I worked 3 other people at cutting boxes of toys open and assembling them into toy boxes and destructing the original boxes to reuse them. I had to help communicate and coordinate with those I was volunteering with to allocate tasks and see which way was the most time efficient. I was only able to stay an hour and a half, so I had to work quickly to get the task done. Luckily we were able to finish in time. This service influenced my understanding of social issues by reminding me of the issue of how many kids each year don't get Christmas gifts, and how it's very important to donate toys so children can enjoy gifts for Christmas. While I was volunteering, I saw so many toys being packaged and sitting out. This really reminded me of how lucky I was as a kid to not have to worry about not getting gifts, so this reminder that kids struggle receiving gifts was really meaningful for me and made me extra motivated to keep volunteering in the future to help get Christmas gifts for kids. Connections I made during this service were that I met 2 older FedEx employees that were volunteering with me. I originally came to serve with a friend, but a group of FedEx employees came as well and volunteered at the same time. So, I was able to talk to these 2 employees for a while and ask about their careers, which was very neat. I plan to continue volunteering with this organization, because I really liked this service and I really support their service goal of providing toys for children. This service was a good experience for me, and I'd definitely be open to volunteering at Toys for Tots next year and in the future. This service definitely aligned with my personal values and beliefs, because I strongly believe in providing and helping those in need. I also really feel bad and am sad to see how many families don't get to share gifts for Christmas, so I was definitely happy to help serve this cause and help in any way I could.

I enjoyed this service a lot since I’ve done something similar to it before. I packed donated toys by age group and seeing the piles transform into boxes felt like a small act but totally worth it. It kept me so busy and involved with the people inside, I didn’t even notice the time going by.