This holiday season, join NYS Music and Toy for Tots as we bring joy to kids around the state this holiday season with our annual giving drive, Jam for Tots.
Traditionally, our Jam for Tots series would be centered around various live music performances in November and December. At each show, fans are encouraged to bring an unwrapped toy as a donation to brighten the day of a kid somewhere in the state. Due to the pandemic, we are changing it up this year so our collective charitable effort doesn’t fall short due to restrictions on live music and mass gatherings.
In lieu of this current situation, NYS Music has teamed up with The Hollow in Albany, Nanola in Malta, Funk n Waffles in Syracuse, Putnam Place in Saratoga Springs, Stewart House in Athens, The Falcon in Marlboro and Hilltop in Tannersville to continue the Jam for Tots tradition.
At each of these venues, whether you’re stopping in for dinner, getting take out or grabbing socially distanced drinks with a side of incidental music, bring an unwrapped toy for kids who are most in need this holiday season. A box will be there to leave your donation (through mid-December), which will be picked up by the Marines and distributed within New York State communities.
We greatly appreciate their support of these venues and the Marines during this annual giving drive. We may not be able to get down to live music while supporting the kids, but we can still support them while we wait for live music to return. Please use proper social distancing when patronizing these wonderfully supportive venues.
Jam for Tots has been an ongoing series dating back to 2008 when Positive Mental Trip frontman Luke Weiler took the show on the road, touring the East Coast while collecting toys for local charities. The event has since returned home to New York State and slowly expanded in the past few years. In 2019, in addition to a record haul of toys, 15 events were held across the state, bringing music and charity together throughout the Holiday Season.
