Your toy library needs you!
Would you like to have a say about how the toy library is
run? Bursting with bright fundraising ideas? Want to give something back to
your local community?
Well, it’s that time of year when the toy library is looking
for new management committee members. To be precise we’re looking for a secretary
(who sorts out the meetings), possibly a vice-chair (to share the chair’s
load), communications and website whizzes, a gardener (to keep our lovely new
outdoor area spruced up) and as many fundraisers as we can get to organise
brilliant events, from parties to the May Fair, and any other ideas you may
have!
If you’d like to know more, or to put yourself forward for
the committee, email either the manager Helen Crockford e17toylibrarymanager@gmail.com,
or the chair at at committee@walthamstowtoylibrary.com,
or come along to the AGM, or both!
Talking of which, the AGM is on 22 October, at 10.30am, during a play session. Please come – not only is it your
chance to see what the staff and committee have been up to this year, how the
toy library’s finances are doing, and how you can get involved to keep the
vital work going, it also needs 5% of our members to be there for the meeting
to be valid. As we’ve now got over 600 members, we need at least 30 of you!
There’ll be cake! And it will be free entry!
Take it outside
Thanks to all those who came to our outdoor open day on 28
September. A good time was had by all, who seemed to love the new play house,
five raised beds (currently being filled and planted with anything from flowers
to herbs), great new sandpit and outdoor music station, all set off perfectly
by jazzy new blue back wall. Thanks to Helen for raising the money via an
exhausting triathlon, and to volunteers for spending a Sunday sawing, painting
and hefting to complete the project. Also thanks to Petals in Bloom for
donating plants, B&Q on the Lea Bridge Road for donating compost, and Waltons
(www.waltons.co.uk) for giving us a
discount on the play house.
Hassle-free ways to help
The toy library is always looking for extra funds. Three
easy ways to help are:
1 Do all your online shopping via easyfundraising.co.uk.
Select the toy library as your chosen charity, and every time you buy something
at Amazon, Sainsbury’s, Net-A-Porter (!) or, indeed, anywhere the toy library
gets a contribution.
2 Bring in your empty printer cartridges for recycling.
3 Ditto old mobile phones!
4 Get your Christmas craft materials from Yellow Moon – we have
their catalogues at the toy library. Order online using our source code
SWA10850 and they will give a 20% donation
to our cause. Go through easyfundraising, we will get even more!
Every little helps
In other fundraising news, thanks to those generous
token-poppers in South Woodford, Waitrose’s Community Matters in July scheme
netted the Toy Library £225!
Rent-a-puzzle
Nights drawing in? Need something to keep the kids occupied
before tea? What you need are jigsaws. For £1 a time, you can hire a puzzle
from the toy library, then bring it back once they tire of its charms. Then, of
course, hire another one!
What do we want?
To make sure we keep offering what our members want, each
year we carry out a survey. Play workers will be handing them around at
sessions. Please fill them in – it really helps us to know what you’re all
thinking. We’ve made it super-streamlined this year, so it won’t take a moment!
Wooooohhhh
Bring your fancy dress cats, bats (and even scaredy-cats) for some
fearsome fun, ghoulish games and scary silliness at our Halloween party on 31 October,
from 3 til 5. Games, crafts, music and food for the kiddies; cakes to tempt the
grown-ups! £5 per child, £8 for two, or £10 for three.
