The Friday Flyer, December 15, 2006 - Article: Celebrating the spirit of giving all year round

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Ellen Kellett holds up a giant bear given her by Taylor Johnson and cleaned at Olga's Cleaners. Olga's offers to clean animals too big for Ellen's washer free of charge. Ellen says the bear will be given to a Lake Elsinore Head Start classroom. Over the course of this year, Ellen has cleaned and given away a total of 3,704 stuffed animals, 225 dolls and 30 puppets.

Celebrating the spirit of giving all year round

     Ellen Kellett had no problem collecting stuffed animals for her annual toy project. In fact, earlier in the year she told her husband Ray she’d try to cut down this year. She didn’t even send out her usual notification in The Friday Flyer, asking for donations of gently used stuffed animals, dolls and puppets, which has appeared in the paper at the beginning of every Christmas season for years.
     Nevertheless, there has been a constant flow of donations over the course of the year and when Ellen looked at this year’s numbers she was amazed. As of December 12, she had spruced up and given away 3,704 stuffed animals (700 more than last year), 225 dolls and 30 puppets. The items were taken to Ellen by a network of friends from Canyon Lake, Sun City, Lake Elsinore, Murrieta, Temecula, Hemet, Paso Robles, Monrovia, Orange and Downey.
     Since 1990 she has given away a total of 33,876 stuffed animals, dolls and puppets to children who might not otherwise receive gifts at Christmas or who find themselves in traumatic circumstances throughout the year.
     The organizations that benefited this year include Canyon Lake Community Church; CLCC Real Life Ministries in Mexico; Care Connexus Day Care in Sun City; Head Start and State Programs in Lake Elsinore, Murrieta, Temecula, Moreno Valley and RTCA Riverside.
     Other organizations to receive stuffed toys were the Inland Valley Hospital Auxiliary in Wildomar; Knights of Columbus in Sun City; Lioness Club of Canyon Lake; Oak Grove Institute of Murrieta, Our House Recovery Home of Hemet; Rancho Damacitas in Temecula; Santa Claus Inc. of San Bernardino; San Bernardino Sexual Assault Services in Redlands; Sun City Gardens Worship Group; Sun City Baptist Church; Cornerstone Community Church of Wildomar; and From the Lord Ministry in Canyon Lake.
     For Canyon Lakers who would like to contribute to this project in the future, Ellen asks that toys be reasonably clean and in good condition. Donors can call her for pick up at 244-8236, or deliver stuffed animals, puppets and clothes dolls to her home at 22693 Canyon Lake Dr. South.