Paddy Maguire’s holiday toy drive

A local gathering, a wider reach

The annual holiday toy drive at Paddy Maguire’s Ale House gave neighbors a simple way to help: bring a new toy and join a community gathering. Behind that invitation was the work of sorting donations and connecting them with organizations serving children and families.

The Gramercy Park Block Association’s December 2013 account described the Neighbors Helping Neighbors Community Service Committee preparing gifts for distribution. Paddy Maguire’s hospitality and the neighborhood’s contributions were the beginning of the journey, not the end.

After Hurricane Sandy

The 2012 drive responded to a particular need. Children at Escuela Hispana Montessori on the Lower East Side had been displaced by flooding at another school location.

After an introduction through Council Member Rosie Mendez, the Block Association delivered winter clothing and later a busload of supplies, including books, educational materials, bedding and other essentials. The toy drive extended that support into the holiday season.

Adopt a Family and other partnerships

In 2013, toys and books reached the Beth Israel Pediatric Unit, Project LIFT and Nazareth Housing, among other recipients. Through Epiphany Church’s Adopt a Family program, gifts also supported organizations providing emergency shelter, supportive housing and family services.

A December 2014 follow-up thanked Paddy and the neighbors who had contributed. Recipients included Escuela Hispana daycare and the hospital’s pediatric unit.

2017–2018

The network continued

Later newsletters recorded toy sorting and distribution with help from police colleagues. Fox House and STEPS to End Family Violence appeared alongside LIFT and Adopt a Family in the 2017 accounts. The December 2018 follow-up again thanked the neighborhood for its toy-drive contributions.

2021–2023

New connections for the gifts

The December 2021 community-service letter recorded Youth Coordination Officers Samantha Williams and Ronel Phillip helping distribute the Block Association’s toy-drive donations to the Nicholas Scoppetta Children’s Center. The officers connected the neighborhood collection with children served by the Administration for Children’s Services.

A January 2023 follow-up documented a separate drive for Nathan Straus Houses: more than 200 toys for more than 70 children, with help from youth officers and Explorers. Read that collection’s story.

A tradition with changing needs

Ask the Block Association about current toy drives before arranging a drop-off.

Explore the related stories of Nazareth Housing and books and school supplies.