What started as a Management 310 project fundraiser has turned into a passion for helping children have a special Christmas. 

Katie Rutledge, junior in agricultural business, agronomy and international agriculture, and her team members Amy Rasmussen, senior in global resource systems, and Elena Guerrero-Caballero, senior in food science, decided to bring Toys for Tots to campus.

The event they are hosting is called Winter Smiles. Winter Smiles will take place from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. everyday from Dec. 1 to Dec. 5 in the free-speech zone in front of Parks Library. 

Rutledge and her team will be selling hot chocolate and other food items. They will also be collected new, unwrapped toys and collecting monetary donations for Toys for Tots.

Toys can also be dropped off in room 2010 of the Student Services Building all week.

Toys for Tots is an organization run by the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve that aims to collect toys during October, November and December. These toys are then distributed to less fortunate children in participating communities for Christmas.

Maj. Bill Hendricks founded the organization in 1947 in Los Angeles. The following year, Toys For Tots was adopted by the United States Marine Corps and became a nationwide project.

The organization hopes to receive enough toys to distribute to more than 7 million children this year, according to its website.

Rutledge said none of her team had ever been involved in Toys for Tots, except for the holiday toy donation at a local Fareway or in school. She said they were not interested in making a profit so they decided a fundraiser would be best.

“Due to the holiday season and the amount of children in need, we decided Toys for Tots would be great,” Rutledge said.

The students were given a month’s notice on the details of the project and $5 from their professor to start them off, Rutledge said.

Rutledge’s team began by writing letters and calling multiple businesses in the Ames community for help in hosting toy-collection boxes and offering donations. Rutledge said they had multiple community sponsors get involved to help them gather supplies. Everything they have received is from donations.

“We have been fortunate to have such great leaders in our community to help us,” Rutledge said.

Rutledge said they called Party Time asking to have a few table and chairs donated, but Party Time ended up offering to donate as many as they need along with a tent and thermovats.

Rutledge’s team has found the process difficult because they have no way to gauge how many students they will have per day, Rutledge said.

“The project started out as a good philanthropic idea for the holidays and for our class,” she said. “Now it has turned into something all three of us are extremely passionate about and really want to make an impact with.”