'BRIEN IS IN DOVER TONIGHT WITH HOW THEY PLAN TO DO IT. I THINK JUST THE FIREFIGHTER NATURE ALWAYS TRYING TO LOOK TO GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY. THOUSANDS OF DOVER FAMILIES HAVE RECEIVED THOUSANDS OF GIFTS SINCE THE DOVER FIRE DEPARTMENT STARARTED THEIR TOY BANK IN THE MID 70S. WE REALLY THOUGHT THAT THAT WAS WHAT WAS IMPORTANT AT THAT TIME. AND LIKE ANYTHING ELSE, IS PASSING THE TORCH ALONG TO TO OTHER FIREFIGHTERS TO TAKE WHAT HE STARTED AND MAKE IT BETTER. NOW IT'S A NONPROFIT AND CONTINUES TO HELP FAMILIES IN NEED. GIVING A TOY TO EACH KID UP TO 12 YEARS OLD EVERY HOLIDAY SEASON, ANY LEFTOVER GIFTS ARE USED TO START THE NEXT YEAR'S STOCKPILE, AND IT GROWS BIGGER AND BIGGER. YEAR AFTER YEAR. THE PROGRAM WE HAVE TODAY, WHERE WE HELP OVER 100 FAMILIES, WELL OVER 100 FAMILIES, JUST HANDING OUT TOYS TO CHILDREN IN NEED. BUT THIS YEAR, THEIR BELOVED TRADITION IS IN JEOPARDY. AFTER AN UNEXPECTED CATASTROPHE EARLIER THIS MONTH, SIX INCHES OF WATER RAINED DOWN ON ALL OF THIS YEAR'S GIFTS IN THE BUILDING. THEY WERE STORED IN. AFTER A WATER LINE BREAK. THAT'S A ROUGH ESTIMATE IS ABOUT $40,000 WORTH OF TOYS. HAD TO BE THROWN OUT. MONTHS OF WORK BY FIRE AND RESCUE CREWS DOWN THE DRAIN AND EVERY TOY TOSSED OUT, DESTROYED BY WATER AND MOLD. WE WOULDN'T WANT TO GIVE ANY TOYS THAT COULD HARM ANYONE. THE TOY BANK IS NOW LEFT TO START FROM SCRATCH. JUST FOUR MONTHS BEFORE THE HOLIDAY SEASON, A FIRST IN THE DECADES LONG TRADITION. THEY ARE LOOKING FOR OTHERS TO GET INTO THE HOLIDAY SPIRIT A LITTLE EARLY AND HELP THEM MAKE SURE THESE FAMILIES GET THEIR GIFTS. AND THIS TRADITION LIVES ON ANOTHER 40 YEARS. IT'S A LOT OF WORK. IT'S VERY DISCOURAGING TO SEE ALL THE TOYS JUST GO TO WASTE, BUT WE'RE VERY PROMISING. WE LOOK FORWARD TO HAVING THE COMMUNITY HELP US OUT AND THEN START GETTING A GOOD STOCKPILE FOR YEARS TO COME. AND WE HAVE ALL THE WAYS THAT YOU CAN DONATE LISTED IN THIS