419 Holiday Match

Perrysburg, Toledo & NW Ohio

A better holiday, matched kid by kid.

We are Amelia and Justin Saxton, in Perrysburg. Money is tight for a lot of families this year. So we are collecting toys, clothes, books, and winter gear from neighbors, and matching each piece to one kid: their age, their size, what they are actually into. Sign-ups and donations open Tuesday, Nov 3. First year we can do 30 families, and we would rather do 30 well than 100 badly.

If your family could use a hand

If money is tight this year, you are exactly who this is for. One short form, five boxes per kid, fill what you know and skip the rest. No paperwork, no proving anything, and your name never gets posted anywhere.

Either way, you hear back from us by text. If we fill up, you hear "waitlist" within two days, not weeks later, and every family has a final answer by Dec 6 (Nov 20 for Hanukkah). Nobody gets left wondering.

Missed the October sign-ups for Salvation Army or Toys for Tots? You can still sign up here. Honestly, that is most of why this exists.

Sign-ups open Nov 3

Hanukkah families: sign-ups close Nov 16, because Hanukkah starts Dec 4 this year.

Simple on purpose

How it works

Three parts, and the middle one is most of the work.

1

Stuff comes in

Neighbors hand over cleanouts. Local resellers send the overstock they cannot sell. And we keep an eye on the local free groups and the clearance racks. If it is free or cheap and a kid here would love it, we go get it.

2

The sort, in our garage

Everything lands in totes at our place, and we go through it piece by piece in the garage: clean it, make sure the pieces are there, test the batteries, tag it by age and size. If it is not right for a gift, it does not go in a bag. It goes to a local clothing closet instead.

3

One kid, one bag

Each bag gets built off that kid's form: a want, something to wear that actually fits, something to read or make, one fun extra. Teens get matched out of the teen stuff first, not handed whatever is left. The bag gets a code, not a name, and you get a text with a pickup window. No ride? Say so on the form and we deliver.

Donors, this part is easy

We will take your cleanout items

You do not have to sort it, wash it, test it, or decide what is still good. Seriously, that is the offer. Bag or box the cleanout, pick drop-off or porch pickup on the form, and the rest is ours.

Toys, games, kids clothes in any size, coats, winter gear, books, art supplies. And teen stuff, please: games, hoodies, sports gear, books for 12 to 18. Older kids get left out of almost every toy drive we have ever seen, and it is the pile we run out of first.

Not everything lands in a holiday bag, and that is fine. Good extras go to local clothing closets and pantries, worn-out stuff gets recycled or tossed by us, and after the holidays we post where it all ended up.

Mark it down

2026 dates

Three holidays, three timelines. Hanukkah comes first this year, so those families run on the early track.

Sign-ups & donations open

Tuesday, Nov 3

Both forms go live for families in Perrysburg, Rossford, and nearby Toledo. We take families in the order complete sign-ups come in, up to 30, and we hold a few spots back for families whose year goes sideways in November or December. So if that is you, sign up anyway. Every family gets a text back, matched or waitlist.

Hanukkah

Starts the evening of Fri, Dec 4 · sign-ups close Nov 16

Hanukkah bundles are matched first and go out Nov 28 to Dec 2.

Last regular drop-off

Thursday, Dec 10

After Dec 10 we only take specific gap items we post about, like a coat in a size we are short on.

Christmas & Kwanzaa

Christmas Fri, Dec 25 · Kwanzaa starts Sat, Dec 26

Pickup and delivery run Dec 19 to 22, labeled for the holiday your family celebrates.

What we promise, plain

Your family's information stays with us. When we ask the community for help, it sounds like this: "we still need coats in size 10-12." Never a family's name, never a kid's photo, never anybody's story.

Most of what we give is gently used, cleaned and checked by us. Some of it is new. We are not a registered charity, so there is no tax deduction in this. We are two parents, a garage full of totes, and a lot of stubborn. Signing up does not promise a full match. If we cannot match your family, the text you get will say that, in those words, and you stay on the waitlist in case more comes in.

How do two people pull this off? Honest answer: we use the new tools that are out now for regular folks. Automation keeps the big inventory list straight, watches the clearance calendars, and suggests which donated item might fit which kid. These tools are out there for anybody now. We are using them to help out around here. And the tools only suggest. One of us makes every call, and if an item goes in your kid's bag, one of us held it, cleaned it, and put it there.

Asked already

Questions

Do I have to prove I need help?

No. No income proof, no paperwork hunt. If you say your family could use a hand this year, we believe you.

What if I have more than 4 kids?

The form covers 4 kids. Fill those in and tell us about the rest in the last box. We will sort it out with you by text.

Can I pick what my kid gets?

You tell us what they love and one specific wish if they have one. We try hard for the wish. We cannot promise that exact item, because everything depends on what comes in.

Where do I drop off?

At our place in Perrysburg, in covered totes during set windows, and the totes come inside when the window ends. We do not post our home address publicly, for obvious reasons. Fill the donor form when it opens, we text you the address and a window within two days, and if you picked porch pickup instead, we text before we come. Nobody gets a surprise visit.

What happens to stuff you cannot use?

Good extras go to local clothing closets and pantries. Worn-out items get recycled or trashed by us. After the holidays we post where the leftovers went.

Who runs this?

Amelia and Justin Saxton, in Perrysburg. It is a community project from our small business, AI, But Make It Real. Same two people behind the 419 Halloween finder, if you used that this fall.