Santa’s sleigh made an early stop in Albany, in the form of a pickup truck, with three of Santa’s helpers and a load of new toys for the Albany/Clinton County Christmas At Home Toy Drive.

The efforts of the Dale Hollow Yacht Club, a group of boat owners at Wisdom Dock on Dale Hollow Lake, has provided several new toys for the upcoming local toy drive. Yacht Club members Deb Flowers, Lawonna McGalliard, and Dana Turner made the delivery of new toys last week at the Clinton County News.

The Club has hosted several events in past years to collect toys, including a Chrismas in July houseboat parade held on the lake. The houseboat parade was cancelled this year, but the club continued to collect toys at several of the organization’s events held this past summer and fall. In addition to toys, the club also collected several monetary donations, allowing for the purchase of new toys that were delivered Monday.

Most of the Dale Hollow Lake Yacht Club members are residents of other areas of the nation, and call Albany and Clinton County their “home away from home” as they stay here on private houseboats during the summer months. Several members came up with the idea of contributing to the local toy drive several years ago, as a way of expressing their gratitude to the community they spend so much time in during their vacation and recreation time.

A tremendous portion of the Christmas at Home toy drive success is directly attributable to the efforts of the Dale Hollow Lake Yacht Club.