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‘It’s such a great cause’

Annual Toys for Tots fun run draws around 200 to 300 riders

Photo by Sabrina Pankratz Riders start off outside of Amiret for the annual Toys for Tots fun run Saturday morning.

AMIRET — For the past 28 years, Lee Seiler has taken part in the Toys for Tots fun run,

“It gives back to the community, it gives back to the kids who are probably unfortunate, it helps different causes that we donate too. Not only the Heart to Heart, but it has kinda expanded to other counties,” Seiler said.

Other riders, such as the Tanner Johnson from Marshall who came with his dad, Ron Johnson and sister, Kia Johnson, for the good weather and larger ride.

“I like the bigger ones, more people, more enjoyable,” Tanner said.

“It’s a good cause,” Ron said.

Dawn Bahn and Tom Bahn, who came down from Marshall and Cottonwood, enjoy these types of rides because of the community.

“We like riding cause kind of the camaraderie with fellow bikers and just riding in general,” Tom said.

They said they have been participating for at least 15 years.

“It’s for the toys, and it’s good cause, and we like to ride,” Tom said.

“The best part of the ride is when everybody is together and we go from Amiret to Marshall and drop off the toys, said Tammara Schons, the co-president of the Toys for Tots fun run.

Schons said she has been co-president of the Toys for Tots fun run with her sister, Pamela Cooreman, for the past four to five years and has been riding it for many years.

“We’ve always rode on Toys for Tots. There was one year that Toys for Tots was going to not happen because they didn’t have enough volunteers to run it. I happened to be in the right place, at the right time,” Schons said.

“I said we’ll just take it over and I called my sister and I said ‘guess what I got us in to.’ And that’s how we started doing it.” Schons said.

Schons said co-president Cooreman has never missed the ride.

“She was actually in a study in Florida for a year and she still came home for Toys for Tots,” Schons said.

Schons said that they have around 200-300 riders in the Toys for Tots fun run. Schons said that they wouldn’t be able to keep this going without all the volunteers, riders, and the people that donate.

“For the last few years for Heart to Heart, we did like $10,000. And, then we give to five or six other counties, wherever the ride goes,” Schons said.

Schons said Modern Woodmen did a matching grant this year up to $500 for the ride.

“Without everybody, the volunteers, the people who donate, we couldn’t do it without them. So, we really appreciate them,” Schons said.

Schons said the Marshall Fire Department, the Marshall Police Department, the Tracy Fire Department and the Lyon County sheriff help a lot on the day of the ride by keeping them safe and blocking streets off for the riders.

“It doesn’t run itself and it’s such a great cause,” Schons said.

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