Toy Run

In 1983, a band of less than a dozen motorcycle enthusiasts trooped around Johnson City went asking merchants and friends to donate toys to help provide a better Christmas for children in less fortunate circumstances. This simple effort 40 years ago has grown to include a large number of volunteers, events and fund-raising thousands of dollars for the children housed at the Cherokee Home for Children in Cherokee, Texas.

 

The need to raise more money for this Toy Run resulted in the 1st Pig Roast in 1992. The Pig Roast is held at the Blanco County Fairgrounds, in Johnson City, TX on the second
weekend in October. The weekend activities usually include several bands, all of which donate their time and talent, a motorcycle rodeo, an elaborate pork roast meal with all the trimmings, continental breakfast on Saturday morning, Sunday church services, free camping, an auction from donated items, vendors of all types and a great time in a secure environment. The three-day benefit raises money from the gate and concession stand receipts, auction, Raffle Ride and a variety of other events. When the Pig Roast began it was not only to raise money for the Cherokee Children’s Home and other children in the Hill Country but to give donors and attendees "something for their money". This is something we still strive to do to this day.

 

While the Pig Roast raises the money in October, the Hill Country Toy Run is the end result. By the first of December volunteers have purchased and wrapped individual gifts
for the children at the Children’s Home. Each child has asked for their own wish and we make sure they get the gift they have personally requested. The remainder of the funds are either presented to the executive director to use as needed in running the home or to house parents to use in meeting the needs of the kids. We also provide year-round help to the Cherokee Children’s Home and children in the Hill Country Area in the form of emergency relief. We now also provide scholarships for graduating seniors from the Cherokee Home for Children. To date we have helped provide a big screen TV for the family room, a new playground, new computers, new games for the game room, $33,000 towards the building of the great recreation center on the campus, and several thousand dollars in cash donations to help house parents take care of the children in their home. On that Saturday a caravan of motorcycles and vehicles, led by Santa, rallies to the home and provides a very special Christmas memory for the children. After watching the children open their gifts, a great meal is provided by the children’s home and the day is completed with bike rides for the kids. It is a day the children (and all of us) look forward to every year!

 

The Hill Country Toy Run was established in 1994 to better organize these events and all volunteers. Many of the Officers and Directors of this organization have been involved with the Toy Run and the Pig Roast since they began. The primary purpose of the organization is to provide for the needs of under privileged children, primarily the Cherokee Home for Children, through the Pig Roast Benefit, donations, and various other fund-raising efforts. Currently we have about 85 members in the association. Membership is open to anyone who wants to join or that just wants to help out with the Pig Roast or the Toy Run. In October of 2008, the Hill Country Toy Run became a 501c3 non-profit organization that to this date gives 100% of it proceeds to help the children of the Hill County Area.