Preparations are underway to ensure thousands of toys get distributed to families across northeastern Ontario. The 77th annual CTV Lions Children’s Christmas Telethon wrapped up in Sudbury Saturday night, ensuring thousands of children in the region will have gifts this Holiday season. The telethon raised a grand total of $357,742, successfully surpassing its goal of $325,000. “It was great,” said Sam Khoury, the telethon chair. “All the help we could have from 15 Lions Clubs in the area and especially the crew of CTV here in Sudbury. It was just wonderful, everybody working together to make it happen.” This week, the focus shifts to distribution. Between 60 to 80 volunteers will begin the intensive task of sorting toys over the course of three days. “Over 16,000 toys will be going out with 10,000 families on average,” Khoury said. On Saturday morning, all of these presents will be delivered to ensure children will have a present to open on Christmas Day. The incredible efforts of the Lions Clubs reach far beyond the Sudbury area. “The area we cover is from the Sault, Elliot Lake, Manitoulin Island, all the way up to Onaping Falls, all the way down to Temiskaming by North Bay on the Quebec side,” said Khoury. The event featured 40 performances alongside numerous donations made both in person and by phone. Khourny said that the final tally is a testament to the hard work put in by volunteers and local organizations. While the music has stopped, the critical work for the Lions Clubs is just beginning. “We start preparing as of the first Monday after the telethon,” said Khoury. “The toys come from Toronto to us. We start (our meetings) in August and even when the telethon is done, we don’t finish till at the end of May. So the only break we have is June and July.” Khoury says he is grateful to the community for opening their hearts and their wallets but strongly encourages all who made a promise to the telethon to honour their pledge so their act of kindness can reach every family this Christmas.
