Holiday toy drive queen, overcame demons to help others
BY KYLE VUILLE
Following a 20-year tradition, Lynne
Corry and her army of ‘elves’ are upping
the ante this holiday season by
handling and distributing toys to over
1,600 kids in NYC.
However, as impressive as today’s
effort is the holiday grand toy donation
and drive was born from one remarkable
woman’s holiday season dispair.
Over two decades ago, fi rst-time
mother, Lynne Corry, sat inside the Samaritan
Daytop drug treatment facility
while her newborn son was miles away
from her in a hospital.
The scene was bleak and Corry
looked around the room at the other
women in facing similar situations.
“I remember sitting there, thinking
‘how can I make this place and these
people more cheery right now?’” said
Corry.
That’s when the idea of delivering
toys to the children and families facing
the same trials and tribulations as her
and other mothers at Samaritan Daytop
came to be.
Corry’s background in sales kicked
in and she instantly got on the phone to
fi nd toy donors.
That holiday season was the start of
a new sobering lifestyle for Corry when
she vowed to create a better life for herself
and her son, Tyler.
Since that year, Corry has worked
with countless individuals and organi-
Left to Right: Tyler Smyth, Lynne Corry, Joe Corry stand behind a table of gifts to be donated for the holidays. Lynne Corry was once a client
at Samaritan Daytop Village, a drug treatment facility, when her son, Tyler, was just an infant. Since her recovery, 21 years ago, Lynne and
Tyler return every holiday season to Samaritan Daytop with gifts for mothers currently in the program. Kyle Vuille/Schneps Media
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zations to make the holidays special for
those caught in the spiral of drug use
like she once was, those many years
ago.
Corry found herself extremely lucky
to have the opportunity to raise her
son and stay drug-free for over 20 years
now.
Corry said she lives a mostly normal
life now in a two-family house in
the Bronx near the park that she slept
homeless nights in as young drug addict.
She joked, “I used to sleep in the
park, now I work for the Parks Department.”
Corry’s son is now in college and
still very much a part of the toy drive as
he was when he was the inspiration behind
his mother’s recovery.
Tyler is now 22 and attends Mercy
College and studies exercise science
and works as an assistant for a physical
therapist.
Tyler said his fi rst memory of being
a part of the toy drive was as a middle
schooler and being just as excited about
collecting the gifts as those receiving
them.
Through the years, Tyler’s friends
have joined in the holiday giving and
he found a new appreciation for the
cause.
“Around senior year of high school,
I realized it was really making an impact,”
Tyler said. “My old lacrosse team
does it every year now, it’s not just me
and my friends, it has spread so much.”
The holiday drive has proved to be
more than a family affair and those at
Samaritan Daytop have been touched
by Corry’s and Tyler’s actions as well.
Harry Scott, assistant vice president
of residential treatment at Samaritan
Daytop said he’s known Corry for four
years now.
“Lynne came in the program many
years ago and has continued to return
every year,” Scott said. “She comes with
her son and his friends and bestows
greetings, hope and gifts for the women
and children here.”
Scott emphasized how much Corry
appreciates the efforts of these women
and how hard it is for these women to
get through the holidays, let alone move
on with their lives.
“What really makes it powerful is to
have these women with infants in their
laps and they see this woman who sat in
the very same seat, but there she stands
with her son all grown up,” Scott said.
“It really brings a message of hope and
provides an example of what they can
achieve.”
Corry said this wouldn’t be possible
without her sponsors and contributors.
Major contributors throughout the
years have been Cardinal Spellman
High School, Five J’s Automotive, Cummins
and Owens Bros. Tree Service.
“All those folks have roots in the
Bronx,” Corry said. “It’s all Bronx
love.”
To make donations, Corry has a registry
with Target that can be found by
searching Lynne’s Holiday Toy Drive.
“We’re really bringing it this year,
and we’re bringing it with joy,” Corry
said.