Stingray Chevrolet and others give toys to kids.
On December 4, Stingray Chevrolet employees unloaded a truckload of toys they donated to the Kiwanis Christmas Angel Project. In total, 1,200 kids in Plant City will be gifted through this initiative. The Florida Strawberry Festival made space to store the toys by opening one of their buildings.
“I think taking part in this is great,” Joel Rogers, who assumed ownership of Stingray Chevrolet on November 1, said. “Of course, Steve and Susan had ownership of the dealership for 18 years, and they have done a great job being involved in the community. We just hope to carry on what they have started.”
“I am excited to get here, and to get involved in the community, and help in any way we can,” his wife, Sunshine, added.
“This has been going on for 35 years with the Kiwanis Club,” Sharon Moody, chair for the program, said. “This started out with a city commissioner who has passed away, Ronald Brown, and it has been flourishing every year, and getting bigger and bigger. Stingray Chevrolet employees have been donating toys for over 500 kids every year. We have others who donate as well. The Rotary Club does it in honor of Billy Harrell, who recently passed away. Billy was a member of Rotary and a past member of the Kiwanis Club. He loved to shop for the kids. He used to buy the toys for the Rotary, but this year they donated money, so I went shopping.” Moody has been a Kiwani for 18 years and has chaired this program for longer than she can remember.
On December 15, the Kiwanis will deliver 30 bags of toys to each of 18 elementary schools on the east side of Hillsborough County, and three head start programs. “We let the guidance counselor or social worker determine the children who are in need. Whatever is on their wish list, we try to get what they ask for. If it is five, six, seven toys, that is what we try to do.”
“I am a local real estate agent,” Clarisa Moody, who has been a member of Kiwanis for two years, said. “I love to go out with the Kiwanis Club to give back to the community. It is what really makes a community. The more you help, the better it goes.”
In addition to Stingray employees, other sponsors jump in to fill in the gaps in the children’s Christmas wish lists, notably the Plant City Rotary Club, South Florida Baptist Hospital, Winn Dixie, Hope Lutheran Church, and Tammy Chancey and team. The Florida Strawberry Festival serves as a logistical partner.
“I am a Business Development Center representative,” Stingray employee, Erin Leone said. “So, I work in internet sales. It’s really, really, really awesome that we get to be a part of the community. Some people frown on our particular business because of the reputation it has. It’s good that we have such a great relationship with the community that we can give back to them like this.
