Next month, the Heartland REALTOR® Organization will put its talents to use for two charities: a Dec. 3 Bell Ringing Day for the Salvation Army and a Dec. 10 Pizza Party benefitting the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program.

The bell-ringing event will be conducted from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Jewel-Osco in McHenry and Jewel-Osco in Crystal Lake. Members will volunteer for time slots at both locations, ringing the familiar bells while standing next to a Salvation Army Red Kettle.

Admission to the Toys For Tots Pizza Party will be one toy – at a value of $10 or more – for each participant. The party will be held from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at Galati’s Hideaway in Cary. It is the fifth consecutive year Heartland members have supported the Toys for Tots drive, says Association Executive Jim Haisler, who is also Heartland’s CEO of Heartland. The event usually provides several hundred toys as Christmas gifts for less fortunate boys and girls who live in the same community they are collected.

Heartland officers include: President Wayne Kurchina of McHenry, President-Elect Jacqueline Kaufmann of Palatine, Secretary/Treasurer Kris Brown of Woodstock, Past President Casey Meyers of Woodstock and Haisler.

(This blog post is one in a series of blog posts about charitable community work performed by local Illinois REALTORS® during the last six weeks of the year. To see all the stories in the series, search for “charitable giving.”)