Children’s Holiday Toy and Gift Card Drive- Donations Welcome!
Over the past several years, our Old Town Smiles team has had the honor of participating in holiday donation drives that aim to improve the lives of the children of Alexandria.
This year our team is excited to be donating to the annual Children’s Holiday Toy and Gift Card Drive for the Alexandria Domestic Violence Program and Sexual Assault Center. This drive is for mothers and children who have been served by the shelter, past and present. Each mother will receive a bag of donated gifts for her children, helping to create special memories for these kids during this time of year. These are often the only gifts these children receive.
We can’t deny that 2020 and 2021 have been unprecedently hard for everyone, especially for at-risk populations such as survivors and their children. With the recent increases in homelessness, domestic violence, and poverty, the need for community support is at an all time high. We see that we can truly be there for our neighbor and support them in some of their most difficult times, even in small ways.
Our Old Town Smiles team will be donating both toys and gift cards, and we know many of you have expressed interest in participating as well. We would love to open up this drive to our entire OTS family if you would like to contribute and show the community how much love we have to give!
We’ve made it simple for you if you would like to participate! Please bring your unwrapped toy or gift card donation to our office on or before December 9th, and we will take care of the rest. You can also use our link to our Amazon Wish List below and have it sent directly to us.
We look forward to having you join us in bringing smiles to so many children’s faces.
As always, with love and gratitude,
Dr. Ahmed and the Old Town Smiles team
Here are some great gift suggestions sent to us from our friends over at the Alexandria Domestic Violence Shelter:
2-4 years
Preschool remote-control vehicles, bath toys, wood and floor puzzles, educational toys, dress up clothes, coloring books with crayons and markers, kitchen set and play food, baby dolls (and accessories), musical toys, stuffed animals, action figures, train sets, building blocks, Play-Doh, board books
Other: Leap Frog, Little Tikes, Disney, Fisher Price Little People, Disney, Mega Blocks, Trolls, Melissa & Doug, Bluey and Baby Shark
5-7 years
Action figures and dolls, board games, puzzles, coloring and activity books, cars and racetracks, tool sets, dress up clothes, doctor sets, dinosaurs, remote-control cars, sleeping bags, balls and sports equipment, educational toys, age-appropriate books
Other: LEGO, Marvel and DC superheroes, Trolls, Star Wars, Furby, Minions, Hatchimals, Nerf, Disney, My Little Pony, Barbie, Doc McStuffins, Hot Wheels, Littlest Pet Shop, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Hot Wheels, Shopkins, Paw Patrol
8-10 years
Arts and crafts kits, roller skates/roller blades, board games, remote-control cars, coloring books and art supplies, bike and helmet, jewelry making kits, scooters, skateboard, sports equipment: soccer balls, basketballs, baseballs, volley balls, etc., Xbox and PS4 games, age-appropriate books. Gift cards: Apple, Game Stop, Walmart, etc.
Other: LEGO, Star Wars, Guardians of the Galaxy, Transformers, Teenage Mutant, Ninja Turtles, X-Men, Disney, Minecraft, etc..
11+ Years
Sports equipment: soccer balls, basketballs, baseballs, volley balls, etc., age-appropriate books. Gift cards: Netflix & Hulu, AMC passes, Amazon, Bath & Body Works, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Chipotle, Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, McDonalds, etc.
Parents
Gift cards: MasterCard & Visa; grocery stores: Safeway, Giant, Shoppers, Harris Teeter, Aldi, etc.; department stores: Target, Best Buy, CVS, Kohl’s, Bath and Body Works, Wal-Mart, Marshalls, TJ Maxx, etc.; restaurants & food: local restaurants, McDonalds, Pizza Hut, Dominos, Subway, Dunkin Donuts, Chipotle, etc.; cookware and dining sets, utensils, bedding, housewares
Feel free to click on the link below to our Amazon Wish List. All of the items are listed but feel free to choose your own gifts as well.
Wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/63JZ17VSHHOW?ref_=wl_share
Mother’s Day Makeover Winner: Something to Smile About
As proud members of the Old Town Community, we have been blessed by the support of our neighbors for over thirty years. To show our solidarity and appreciation, Old Town Smiles performs pro bono dental work for four to six community members every year. Most dental issues, if untreated, can greatly impact a person’s quality of life. The pain and price of fixing these issues can easily become overwhelming, creating a sense of hopelessness. We strive to re-energize all facets of life by giving our community members what many of us take for granted: a beautiful, healthy smile!
Please read our blog entry for more information: Click here.
Running Brooke
The team at Old Town Smiles is proud to be involved with RunningBrooke, an incredible organization that supports our local community! During a recent volunteer day, we worked to install a pollinator garden for the local community. Thank you Running Brooke for sponsoring such a wonderful event.
Old Town Smiles is proud to be a sponsor of our patient, Brooke Curran. Brooke is the founder of Running Brooke, a non-profit organization that was started with an effort to raise funds to give back to underserved children residing in Alexandria, VA.
Please visit their website for more information: http://runningbrooke.org/