Comic Book Moms Battle Crimes Against Christmas Trees in Appalachia

Founded in 2010, the Comic Book Moms Toy Run is now a yearly event. Each holiday season, B.E. (Grace from Blessed Elements) and C.B.M. (moi) outreach to vendors who are willing to help deliver smiles by providing toys for Appalachian Kentucky Christmas trees.

B.E. and C.B.M. also Toy It Forward, gifting many of the same exciting toys, books and games we share with readers (via feature reviews and gift guides) to the children who dream of finding these treasures on Christmas morning.

This year, the donation duo were rescued by Safari Ltd. who selflessly jumped in to the fray, offering boxes and boxes of creative play toys to put under the trees of little superheroes in need.

Loading up the Comic Book Mom mobile with toys for the 2012 toy run.

Toy run stops this year included Floyd, Magoffin, and Menifee county and though all are highly impoverished areas, it is The Open Door in Magoffin that was/is truly in dire need this year.

45 tornadoes ripped through Eastern Kentucky this spring. An EF3 with winds of over 160 miles per hour touched down decimating 49 miles of Appalachian country which included The Open Door.  The charity building, along with the nearby church were destroyed (including all of the donation goods housed in these buildings.)

It's one thing to live in an impoverished area where you are barely hanging on to the little you have, it's quite another to have the resources you depend on destroyed along with your home and livelihoods.  The Comic Book Moms knew the crimes against Christmas trees (sadly, if there are actually any Christmas trees to be found after the storm,) would be insurmountable and are thrilled that we were able to play a part in helping this charity replenish and rejoice this holiday season!

Delivering toys to The Open Door (now functioning out of a small trailer donated by some generous folks.)

There are not adequate words to convey the gratitude I feel for my partners in crime fighting this year, B.E. and Safari Ltd.  Thanks to their support, we able to deliver over 500 toys, books and games to bring joy and creative play to children who truly need (and deserve) some joy this holiday season.

I hope you'll consider joining me in showing Safari Ltd. some well-deserved "thank you" luv 
- by friending them on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/safariltd 
- following on Twitter https://twitter.com/safariltd 
- and considering their amazing hand-painted authentic replica toys for gift giving this holiday season! Check out the entire line at http://www.safariltd.com/ 

There is still great need.  If you would like to be involved with the Appalachian Toy Run or our Toy It Forward program, details can be found at comicbookmom.org 

Wishing you a joy-filled and adventurous holiday season!