Florence, AZ – On behalf of The Association of Florence Firefighters, we would like to extend a heartfelt “thank you” to the many contributors who assisted us in this year’s Toy Drive. This special project that our Association puts together each year, allows us to make Christmas a little brighter for local Florence families who have fallen on hard times. Together, we were able to assist 49 families and 148 children this year!
In an effort to reach the community, our firefighters served up free pancakes to the public at our Pancake Breakfast Toy Drive with Santa stopping by as our special guest! We are proud to continue to partner with the Anthem Safeway for this fun community event. Not only do they allow us to use the space in front of the store, but they gave our association a donation toward the supplies needed. Arizona Materials also donated the use of their amazing grilling trailer for the hundreds of pancakes that were served.
Our Association would also like to extend a special “thank you” to the Anthem Legends Community in Sun City. Once again, the neighborhood’s board of organizers did a phenomenal job creating a walking tour of beautifully decorated homes with toy donations serving as admission for the tour. With this neighborhood’s support and generosity, we were able to provide toys to many additional children and families this year.
We would also like to highlight the Florence Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members who volunteered their time and effort by helping with event set up and take down, collecting and transporting toys, and organizing the wrapping of so many gifts! Over the course of three days, the CERT members & Florence Fire crews wrapped, tagged, and bagged hundreds of gifts. And during our three days of wrapping, A&M Pizza graciously provided lunch by delivering the biggest pizza we’ve ever seen! Thank you to A&M Pizza for donating a delicious lunch to our amazing volunteers.
Lastly, The Association of Florence Firefighters would like to thank Fire Department Administration, Town of Florence staff, several individual business donors, and the Florence community for donating to this special cause. On behalf of the families who were the recipients of this year’s toy drive, they humbly expressed their appreciation and deep gratitude for the helping hand that made Christmas a little brighter for their children. Thank you for everything Florence!