TOYBOX CAMPAIGN IS OFF AND RUNNING

Today the hard work of Toybox begins. Starting at 10 a.m., applications for Toybox gifts will be accepted at the Salvation Army headquarters, 701 Good Hope.

Traditionally, parents and guardians of needy children stand in line the first day applications are accepted, hoping to ensure a place on the Toybox list for their children.

How long the list can grow depends on donations to Toybox. Gifts are accepted beginning today at a number of locations and volunteers are setting up the headquarters where toys will be sorted and routed to needy children.

Also beginning today, the Salvation Army will be taking applications for its annual Christmas Basket program. The Army provides food and other items to needy families. Some of the $105,000 collected through the Army's Tree of Lights campaign is utilized for holiday gifts.

The majority of money raised is used throughout the year to fund Salvation Army projects.

Toybox is a joint project of the Cape Girardeau Jaycees and the Southeast Missourian newspaper.

Toys will be delivered Dec. 17 by a team of Jaycees Santas and helpers.

Applications for Toybox will be accepted at the Salvation Army headquarters, 701 Good Hope, through Dec. 11 from 10 a.m. to noon and from 2-4 p.m.

New and unwrapped gifts for children from birth through age 12 may be delivered starting Monday to any of the following locations: Southeast Missourian, 301 Broadway, Boatmen's Bank Cape Girardeau locations, Capital Bank Cape Girardeau locations, Commerce Bank, Farm and Home Savings Association, Perry Travel Center, Gulliver's Travel Agency, and West Park Mall.

Donations may be mailed to Toybox Trust, P.O. Box 1626, Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63702-1626, or dropped off at the Southeast Missourian.