Each year Albany Rotary sponsors a toys and more collection to benefit the Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center. Items include toys, activity items and personal care items. They can be purchased through our Amazon Wish List and ship direct to Albany Rotary for collection and delivery to the Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center.
Each summer, when the sun is high and most families are enjoying school vacations and warm weather, Albany Rotary turns its focus to children who can’t enjoy the season in the same way. Our annual Toys & More Collection supports the Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center—a project designed intentionally for the summer months, because joy shouldn’t only arrive at Christmas.
While the winter holidays often bring an abundance of donated toys, treats, and cheerful gestures, the summer can be a quieter, more challenging time for young patients and their families. Long hospital days can feel even longer when friends are outside playing, camps are underway, and the world feels full of sunshine they can’t fully enjoy. That’s why Albany Rotary chooses this season to step in—lifting spirits exactly when the need is greatest.
The collection includes toys, arts and crafts, books, games, comfort items, and personal care essentials—thoughtfully curated in partnership with hospital staff to ensure every donation is both useful and uplifting. Supporters can choose items directly from our Amazon Wish List, making participation effortless. With a few clicks, gifts are shipped straight to Albany Rotary, where members sort, prepare, and deliver them to the Children’s Hospital.
As the donations arrive, boxes begin to fill with color, creativity, and kindness. There are sketch pads for budding artists, sensory toys for calming anxious moments, travel-sized hygiene items for parents unexpectedly staying overnight, and plush companions to comfort children during tests or treatments. Each item carries the same message: your community sees you, cares about you, and wants to brighten your day.
When Rotarians deliver the final collection to the Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital, the impact is immediate and heartfelt. Smiles widen. Rooms brighten. Families feel supported. And staff are reminded that their young patients are surrounded by a caring community.
Each year, Albany Rotary’s Toys & More Collection turns an ordinary summer into a season of generosity—one that brings sunshine inside, even for those who can’t go outside to feel it themselves.
