Princeton Brothers Spread Cheer Through Toy Donation Project

Princeton NJ

10 December, 2020

12:23 PM

Description

PRINCETON, NJ — Two Princeton teens are spreading cheer and positivity, by distributing toys to children in the community. Ryan and Kyle Grzymala's project, R+K Toys, collects gently-used toys and games, and donates them to children in need. And the boys have been doing this for the past eight years. "When I started this project, I was a 5th grader in Riverside Elementary School," said Ryan, 17. At the time, Ryan found he had outgrown certain toys, but didn't want to throw them away because they were in good condition. "So that was how we came up with the idea to give kids at the elementary schools newer and more toys to play with," he said. What began at Riverside Elementary, slowly expanded to other Princeton schools. The Grzymala brothers would collect gently-used toys, clean them up and redistribute them to teachers for use in their classrooms, indoor recess, and to students that teachers thought might enjoy them at home. The duo collects around 1000 toys every year, and do two to three toy distribution events. They've partnered with local groups and organizations. They've taken their project to the Princeton Public Library's freecycle event and also the Sustainable Princeton for their first Greenfest. "Last year's Sustainable Princeton event was big, and we were able to donate all our toys including the excess stock," said Ryan. But this year, due to the pandemic, the duo has had to change their distribution style. They do curbside pickups and more recently, tied up with the Princeton Mobile Food Pantry, donating around 95 toys a month. "The Sustainable Princeton Repair Cafe that we did, I think was our bigger event this year," said Kyle, a 13-year-old 8th grader at Princeton United Middle School. The duo's project not only brings a smile to other children, but also helps in environmental preservation by preventing waste. And the brothers are committed to the project. Before the pandemic, Ryan said he would get messages from friend asking to hang out. "But we would decline because there would be so much to sort in the garage," he said. Currently, they are sorting through toys to donate to HomeFront NJ - an organization that helps families fight poverty and homelessness. With Ryan getting ready to leave for college, the responsibility of keeping the project running falls on Kyle. "We've expanded so much. And we're still focusing on expanding and reaching out. But eventually it will reach a point where we will have to hit another step above that. And that is still currently being thought about," said Kyle. If you would like to donate gently-used toys, you can sign up and follow the R+K Toys Facebook page. You can also email them at [email protected]. The brothers will arrange a time and date to come pick up the donation. All donations of toys, games and puzzles are accepted. The project does not accept video games, stuffed animals, or primarily fabric items such as dolls, etc. This story is part of Patch's Headlining Hope series, which profiles local nonprofits and charitable organizations in need of volunteers and resources. If you know of a local organization that should be profiled, contact [email protected]. Thank you for reading. Have a correction or news tip? Email [email protected] Get breaking news alerts on your phone with our app. Download here. Sign up to get Patch emails so you don't miss out on local and statewide news.