MOOSEJAWTODAY.COM -- Just when you think the Salvation Army Toy Run couldn’t get any bigger or better, it once again finds a way to outdo itself.
More than 250 motorcyclists -- by many accounts the most to ever participate in the event -- took part in the annual Christmas donation ride on Saturday afternoon, helping ensure as many families as possible will have toys under the tree come Christmas time.
The premise of the event is simple: participants buy a new and unwrapped toy, take part in the thunderous ride up Main Street and down Thatcher Drive to the Salvation Army citadel, where the toys and donations are gathered.
Folks could then have a drink and a donut and visit for a bit while admiring some of the new and vintage rides that took part in the event.
The 2024 Toy Run was the first for Major Byron Kean, who recently arrived in Moose Jaw with wife Karen to take over leadership roles with the local Salvation Army.
“This is the first time I’ve experienced a toy run lke this, and to see all these toys and the motorcyclists and everybody… I was taking video as they came into the parking lot and I had goosebumps the whole time,” he said as hundreds of bikers milled around the ever-growing pile of toys. “There’s tremendous support from the whole community.”
That’s the biggest thing about the Moose Jaw Cycle Association venture -- community support. The Toy Run wouldn’t be what it is without the riders who come out every year, bolstered by their compatriots from all over southern Saskatchewan.
“It’s absolutely awesome and we’re so, so grateful,” Kean said. “I can’t express my gratitude enough to these people here today and the next few months leading into Christmas. With everyone pulling together we’ll be able to help as many people as we possibly can.”
The toys will now be sorted and come closer to Christmas, the now familiar format will take place as a special ‘store’ is set up in the citadel for parents who might not be able to afford presents for their children.
“To see a smile on a child’s face or an expression of gratitude on a parent’s face because they don’t have the spare cash to buy gifts, to know there are people in the community that are willing to step up and help, that feeling is beyond compare,” Kean said. “There is nothing that can compare to it.”
The next major event to support the Salvation Army’s Christmas venture will be the Moose Jaw Warriors’ annual Teddy Bear Toss, which will take place in early December. Be sure to keep an eye out for updates on when it will be taking place!
