Today’s children are tomorrow’s leaders – civic, business and social. Alarmingly, approximately 13 million America children live in poverty. Studies reveal that growing up in poverty can have an adverse psychological impact on a child. One of the adverse impacts is low self-esteem – a by-product of little or no hope for the future. Each child has a choice of two paths to the future. One path leads
to a productive life as an asset to the community. The other path leads to a life of dependency on the community for support. Without outside help, the path of least resistance is too often the path to a life of dependency. The critical social issue is the identification and pursuit of programs, which will create or raise the self-esteem of children, give them hope for the future and help steer them toward productive lives. One of the best means of dealing with these three poverty by-products is through mentoring programs. Since it is not possible for all children who live in poverty situations to have the benefit of mentoring programs, alternative means of doing the job must be pursued. Fortunately, alternative programs exist. Toys for Tots is one such alternative. It is a unique passive mentoring program that provides a ray of hope for the future. The new toy which millions of needy children receive each Christmas from Marines, through the Toys for Tots program, delivers a message of hope. By being excellent role models and setting an example for others to emulate, Marines, through Toys for Tots, perform passive mentoring. Economically disadvantaged children who receive toys through the Toys for Tots program have an opportunity to observe first hand how young men and women, just like themselves, have achieved success. Youngsters readily recognize that Marines achieve their success through adherence to the highest standards of discipline, grooming, patriotism, physical fitness and moral character. The fact that Marines are trained for combat and are prepared to face nearly unendurable hardships is not lost on needy children. Nor is the fact lost that these same combat trained Marines find time to be compassionate for the less fortunate members of America’s society. Even more importantly, children are impressed by the willingness of Marines to work overtime to do something for them. Marines set an example for youngsters to strive to emulate. Unfortunately, there are no studies that present concrete evidence to support the positive impact Toys for Tots has on children. However, experts, who are knowledgeable of Toys for Tots, conclude that Toys for Tots has the potential to have the requisite positive influence on the development of needy youngsters. Concurrently, actual accounts from individuals reveal that Toys for tots has motivated youngsters to grow into responsible, productive, patriotic citizens and community leaders. It is important to point out that U. Marines continually improve the Toys for Tots program. For example, from 1947 through 1979, Marine distributed new and used toys at Christmas. Since Christmas 1980, Marines have distributed only new toys. One of the principal reasons was that delivering a “hand-me-down” toys sent the wrong message. A second hand toy give a youngster the impression that he or she is a “second-class” citizen, worthy only of someone’s cast-off toys. Marines want to create and enhance self-esteem and deliver a message of hope. This can only come in the form of a new toy.
