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Gilbert woman’s Christmas toy fundraiser brings in over $18,000

By Jessica Swarner

December 18, 2024

Kendahl Lock of Gilbert raised over $18,000 and purchased over 1,200 gifts for Toys for Tots this year. 

Kendahl Lock of Gilbert had a rough 2020. When two of her family members died during the COVID-19 pandemic, she and other loved ones didn’t get to be by their sides or attend funerals. 

Lock wanted to find a way to give back to her community during a difficult time, and Toys for Tots branches around the country were seeing fewer donations than normal. 

She told friends and family that if they sent her money, she’d buy toys and donate them. She ended up bringing in over $5,000 and purchasing over 300 gifts. She also ran fundraisers in 2021 and 2022, beating her previous total each time. 

Things have changed a lot since that first fundraiser—Lock used GoFundMe to put out the call to action this year, and she brought in over $18,000, when her goal had only been $12,000. 

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“ To be honest, I didn’t think I was going to even meet my goal—so there were many times this year that I was left speechless and crying tears of happiness,” Lock told The Copper Courier. 

The largest donation of $6,000 came from Lock’s husband’s company A2P. A friend donated $5,000, while a partner of A2P donated $3,500. The rest of the money came from smaller donations from friends and family. 

Lock purchased 1,235 toys with the money and filled 52 Toys for Tots boxes with the gifts. 

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Boxes full of toys in Kendahl Lock’s garage in Gilbert. (Photo courtesy of Kendahl Lock)

“ There were so many toys. I was overwhelmed. I had to bring in reinforcements,” Lock said. 

Lock’s oldest friend Emmy, whom she has known since she was 4, helped Lock complete two huge toy hauls at stores over a weekend. 

As in previous years, Lock kept a spreadsheet that tracked everything she bought so she could make sure she was getting toys for a wide variety of ages and interests. She made sure to purchase not only toys, but also board games, STEM kits, and crafts. This year, she said, toys related to the movie “Wicked” were very popular. 

Toys for Tots sent a truck to Lock’s home in mid-November to pick up all the goods. 

“ It really touched my heart. It lifted my spirits, seeing the true Christmas spirit and generosity of those that donated,” Lock said. “It’s been an extremely rough year for myself and my family, and this was just a wonderful way to keep my mind busy and just have something positive.”

She has dubbed the fundraiser “Undercover Santa,” inspired by a friend’s son who saw photos of the first year’s toy haul and asked her if that was her role. 

While Lock’s fundraiser is over, Toys for Tots is still accepting donations online. The nonprofit’s Maricopa County chapter notes on its website that while requests for toys are closed, families should be on the lookout for updates on possible leftover items. 

Last year, the Maricopa County chapter distributed nearly 64,000 toys to nearly 30,000 children. 

Lock said that while her focus has been on making sure kids have a merry Christmas, one of her friends broadened her thinking to realize the fundraiser’s wider impact. 

 ”She said that you don’t know how much it means to the parents that they’re able to give a gift to their child that they wouldn’t normally get,” Lock said. “So it makes me happy to know that parents have this pride now that they are able to give their child a Christmas.”

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the final totals of the 2020 toy drive. 

Author

  • Jessica Swarner

    Jessica Swarner is the community editor for The Copper Courier. She is an ASU alumna and previously worked at KTAR News 92.3 FM in Phoenix.

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