Toys put charities in a bind

From Staff and Wire Reports

Published: December 5, 2007

With millions of toys recalled this year, charities across the country are struggling to play Santa.

Charities from Goodwill to the Salvation Army are either refusing toy donations or devoting more time to inspections before toys are distributed.

The Salvation Army in Oklahoma City is asking for additional volunteers to sort toys and make sure recalled toys aren't making it into the hands of needy children, said Heide Brandes, spokeswoman for the charity.

"In a small way, it's pretty much a nightmare,” Brandes said. "Most of the toys are off the shelves. People who are buying new toys aren't running into as much trouble.”

The organization, which has Angel Trees throughout the city where people can pick a child's wish list, will probably dip into reserves of old toys if there aren't enough people participating in the Angel Tree program. When they use older toys to provide gifts for needy children, the toys must be checked against a recall list, Brandes said.

"Toys are being thrown away,” she said. "It's a shame but we'd rather be safe than sorry. We don't want a bunch of kiddos getting lead poisoning.”

At Goodwill stores in Oklahoma, employees are checking for recalled toys, said Stephanie McInturff, community relations coordinator with Oklahoma Goodwill Industries.

"We take every precaution possible from the point of when we receive donations to the point of sale to protect consumers from recalled products,” she said. "We ask that donors check the recall list prior to donating, but with so many items to watch out for, it's easy to miss something.”

Millions of Chinese-made toys were recalled this year due to high levels of lead, including Mattel toys featuring Big Bird and Dora the Explorer and RC2 Corp.'s Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway.

Earlier, Aqua Dots, made in China and distributed in the U.S. by Spin Master, were recalled because the product was tainted with a chemical that can turn into a date-rape drug if swallowed.

About 1 million Easy-Bake ovens by Hasbro Inc. were also recalled earlier this year after reports of about 250 children getting their hands caught in the oven's front opening.

Parents are being reminded that disposing of the toys this holiday doesn't mean dropping them off at a local charity.

Salvation Army national spokeswoman Melissa Temme said about 150 Salvation Army Thrift Stores in the South have stopped accepting toy donations because of the recalls.

Temme said the Salvation Army is seeking additional volunteers to help sort toys and alerting social service clients about the recalls.

Goodwill Industries of Mississippi President Darby Sowell said the six stores operating in his area are accepting toys.

Sowell said there's no rigorous inspections of the toys, and he isn't worried about the recalls because most of the toys are secondhand.

"They're the old toys that the boys and girls have been using. They don't fit into that group that has been recalled,” Sowell said. "If we knew about it, we would not accept it or sell it. With all the masses that come in, it would be difficult for us to tell where these have come from.”

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