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HELPING HANDS Medford gift-giver gets a boost Lightly Loved Toys will receive $1,000 from Jolly Time Popcorn's Kernels of Kindness program to continue providing toys for needy families Comment By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 21, 2014 at 12:01 AM By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 21, 2014 at 12:01 AM --> HOW TO HELP Lightly Loved Toys accepts gently used and new toys, cash donations and books. For more information, or to donate, call Kathy Greager at 541-774-9499. Greager's organization... » Read more X HOW TO HELP Lightly Loved Toys accepts gently used and new toys, cash donations and books. For more information, or to donate, call Kathy Greager at 541-774-9499. Greager's organization is not a registered nonprofit, but donors who wish to deduct their donations from taxes can receive a receipt to do so from New Song Church. » Social News MEDFORD — A Medford woman who began collecting toys for local children more than a dozen years ago got a burst of help from her family's favorite popcorn maker this week. Kathy Greager's project, Lightly Loved Toys, will receive $1,000 from Jolly Time Popcorn's Kernels of Kindness program to continue providing toys for needy Rogue Valley families. Lightly Loved Toys was one of 100 community-based projects in the country selected for the award from more than 6,600 that applied. Greager founded the effort in 2002 by helping 89 local children receive an assortment of donated toys during the holiday season — some newly purchased but most gently used and recycled. Realizing a need, she began hosting birthday parties, as well. Notified this week of the Jolly Time award, Greager said she was grateful for the extra help, as she's headed into her busy holiday season and is hoping to spread the word about her project and use the extra funds to take advantage of pre-holiday sales. "This will help keep us going. We have help available for birthdays and Christmas for families who are having a hard time. We'll use the money to shop clearance deals and get as many toys as we can," she said. A longtime Girl Scout leader who often recruits scout troops to host birthday parties and toy drives, Greager estimates more than 1,000 children are helped each year with birthday and Christmas presents. "Everyone knows about us now. We do birthday parties and we have people who miss the Christmas cutoff with other agencies, so they're referred to us for toys," she said. "All the agencies refer families to us. We try to help fill the gap." At Christmas time, families who are referred for toys are scheduled for an appointment and are invited to come "shop," or pick out toys for their children. Recipients get with one main gift, two smaller gifts, a book, a stuffed animal and a stocking. "We run four to six hours per day, four days a week, starting right after Thanksgiving and going until Christmas break," Greager said. The $1,000 award, she said, would put a dent in her $5,000 annual budget. The Medford mom also received two Pepsi Refresh grants in recent years and appeared on a national Pepsi commercial highlighting community projects. A toy barrel during holiday light displays on Cherry Lane also provides support to Greager, in addition to New Song Church, Medford Montessori School, various Girl Scout troops and community volunteers. "We literally start working on it the day after Christmas, and it's something I work on all year long to be able to meet the need that we have," Greager said. Tracy Boever, director of public relations and marketing, said Greager's project was a good fit for the popcorn maker's search for unique acts of kindness. "We didn't really have any set guidelines, per se, it just had to be someone who was doing good in their community. We had over 6,600 entries that ranged from something like Lightly Loved Toys to animal rescue to a 92-year-old gentleman who travels around Iowa to play Taps at veterans funerals," Boever said, noting that the effort to highlight and help fund 100 projects was in honor of Jolly Time Popcorn's centennial anniversary. "Rather than just choose one organization, we thought, 'Why not give as much as possible to a variety of people and a variety of good causes?' " Greager said she looked forward to growing her project and continuing her mission of ensuring that no children in the community go without birthday or Christmas presents. "I'm really excited because the money from Jolly Time will go a long way in helping to buy toys to make sure we have enough for everyone who comes to us," she said. Buffy Pollock is a freelance writer living in Medford. Email her at [email protected] By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Buffy Pollock for the Mail Tribune Posted Sep. 21, 2014 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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