Hometown Heroes to the rescue
By Nathan Straus News Reporter

With Halloween around the corner and Christmas not far off, the Hometown Heroes of Brownsboro have begun their annual toy drive. Toys can be donated to children in danger of a present-free Christmas by dropping the goodies off at drop sites in Brownsboro Police Department, Y's Hometown Foods, El Presidente and Pizza Pro.

Susan Carver, coordinator for Hometown Heroes and Brownsboro's municipal court judge, said the police department and the fire department embarks on this task each year.

"They team up to provide toys to the students in Brownsboro Independent School District," Carver said.

In addition to toy donations, Hometown Heroes will also take coat and jacket donations. Jackets and coats in fair condition can be dropped off at Brownsboro Police Department so a needy child or adult won't be caught in cold weather without one, Carver said.

"It's getting cold," Carver said, "and kids need coats."

Toy donations can be made starting the first week of November, while a rack for coat donations will be put up over the weekend, Carver said Tuesday, October 23.

Coats must be in decent condition, Carver also said. There can't be issues like tears or missing buttons.

Those without spare coats can simply donate money to the Hometown Heroes' bank account at First State Bank in Brownsboro. Donations in this manner are accepted yearround, and donation money won't be limited only to coats; it will be used wherever there is a need, Carver said.

Ron Shields, Brownsboro police chief, said the goal of Hometown Heroes is to provide Christmas gifts for families who don't have a means to provide for their children.

"We want to make sure no child goes without receiving Christmas gifts," Shields said.

Shields also said the program helps elderly people too by delivering gifts and fruit baskets.

To receive aid, families fill out an application specifying their needs and how many children they have. Shields said Hometown Heroes tries to get two or three presents for each child.

The Hometown Heroes program is now in its fourth year, Carver said. It started when an officer responded to a disturbance call on Christmas Eve at around 11:30 pm. While he was out he noticed a family with three girls and no presents under the tree.

"He called some of the dispatchers out and they got them gifts for Christmas," Carver said.

Hometown Heroes was born that Christmas and has since grown to what it is today.

Shields said he has only been with the program since last year, but it did an extremely good job of fulfilling its goal, he said.

Plans are also underway for running Hometown Heroes' first food drive, but Carver said nothing was currently set in stone at the time this was written.