Dec. 14, the evening of the annual Joseph Silva Memorial Toy Drive Dinner, was forecast as a wintry, slushy mess, typically a harbinger of poor attendance, but organizer Julie Silva had nothing to worry about.
"Saturday night was wonderful," Silva said, with more than 100 people in attendance despite the foul weather. Better yet, on Thursday, Dec. 19, Silva and her fellow toy drive organizers put together the toy drive's largest shipment to Children's Friends in Providence in 25 years. There wasn't an official count at the time, Silva said, "But it is above our 1,000-toy goal," she said.
Silva said she was, "Very excited. Very happy. Thrilled to know that this was a successful event."
Organizers have set a goal of 1,000 toys collected this year in honor of Silva's father, Joe Silva, who ran the toy drive up to his death in February. Silva said she'll be starting work on the 2014 toy drive first thing in January in honor of her dad.
"I intend to continue this in his memory," Silva said.
Contact Julie Silva at js7950@aol.com or 401-434-3556 if you'd like to help with the 2014 drive.
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