LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. — A group of Santa’s elves are busy handmaking wooden toys for children in Lee’s Summit this Christmas.
The group called Hobby Hut is made up of residents at the John Knox Village Senior Living Community. Children within the Lee’s Summit Social Services get these toys, made to last for generations.
“I am making a locomotive and cars for children. We make it out of wood, form it, use a pattern and put the toy together,” Larry Nichols, toymaker, said.
Nichols didn’t know what to expect when he moved into John Knox Village seven years ago.
“They taught me exactly how everything went and I just fell in love with it,” he said. “I thought this was really great, that we can do these things!”
But when he found the Hobby Hut group, he found his people and his calling.
“There are many children who won’t have a toy on Christmas," Nichols said. "And it gives us something creative to do,” he said. “The creation of a toy that will last, and maybe that child will grow up and have these toys for their children. They’re heirlooms, they’ll last.”
Nichols said their coffee breaks might be the best part. They laugh and talk about life, and the Chiefs. Or it might be about Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce.
"It may not be the game at all!," Nichols said. "It was her birthday yesterday, wasn’t it? I think it was, she turned 34!” Nichols said.
Nichols said they taught him more than just craftsmanship, but also friendship.
“We’re all like a family and we know if someone’s not here. And we talk together, ask what we’d like to do, maybe a procedure we can do better. You can learn from someone,” he said.
Everything the Hobby Hut group does is from donations, from the wood to the paint, to the actual transferring of their toys. If you’d like to learn more or donate you can visit their website.
