Caroline Previdi was a child who cared deeply for others, and was “the friend who wanted to make sure everyone was OK,” her teachers said. When she was 5, she emptied her piggy bank to give her savings to a toy drive for needy children — a project of the Newtown Knights of Columbus at St Rose of Lima Church.

“She wanted to make sure every child had a present under the tree on Christmas morning,” according to The Caroline Previdi Foundation, founded after she lost her life in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting on December 14, 2012.

The Knights renamed their toy drive in her memory the following year. Matthew Velsmid, who has chaired the drive the last four years, assisted by a team of dedicated volunteers, said everyone has been “incredibly generous” with their donations to The Caroline Previdi Toy Chest ever since.

“We collected about 2,000 toys last year, and served more than 150 families,” Velsmid says.

Many contributors send toys through Amazon (often anonymously) to the church, where the drive is based. Others arrive in person, dropping new, unwrapped toys into donation boxes. This year’s collection runs through December 14.

Frank Sequenzia, who has been involved for six years, and now serves as Grand Knight/director of Newtown’s Knights of Columbus, says it has been “an overwhelming and humbling experience to be part of this.”

Sequenzia says every toy donated is sorted by gender and age. Volunteers organize them in the church’s gathering hall. Everything from Barbie dolls and PAW Patrol plush toys to colorful LEGO sets are piled high on rows of tables, ready for distribution.

Some are delivered to Newtown families identified through outreach to local schools. In other cases, family members come in to make their selections.

“Some prefer to keep things private,” Velsmid says. “Newtown families are served first … Then we open it to area towns.” From Danbury and Brookfield to Ansonia and Waterbury, 21 towns in all have been served.

Sequenzia recalls a memorable moment last December when parents were choosing gifts for their children — toys they otherwise could not have afforded.

“This woman came in and was looking for a specific doll. This was her top choice — her daughter needed to have this,” he said.

The toy she wanted was an American Girl doll. The 18-inch-tall dolls portray girls of various ethnicities, faiths and nationalities throughout different periods of history.

“It was one of the bigger, more popular toys. We hadn’t put them out yet because we kind of spread them out through the groups,” said Sequenzia, who told the women he would check an area behind a curtain where some donations were still stored.

“I found this doll and brought it to her and she started crying — just crying tears of joy.” It was the exact one she was looking for, and she couldn’t believe it. She kept saying, “Really?”

“Yes, really,” he told her. “This is yours. Take it!”

She was so thankful and appreciative.

“It was the right place at the right time,” he recalled. “If she hadn’t been there, her daughter would never have gotten that doll. So, that made me feel very, very good.”

More than 500 children received gifts through last year’s effort. No questions are asked of those who come for toys, but only one person per household can walk through, Sequenzia says.

“Whatever program we do, the community always supports our mission; they never disappoint,” Sequenzia adds, noting the Knights’ last project was a coat drive.

(They checked with Newtown schools for that one, too.)

“You may think Newtown is a pretty wealthy community, but there’s such a need here, even for kids’ winter coats. Fifty-four children’s coats were needed this year. It’s overwhelming.”

(Although the Knights collected all kinds, the coats given to schoolchildren were all new.)

Regarding the toy drive, Velsmid says the number of donations keeps growing, which is wonderful, because it allows them to help more families through assistance that is completely confidential.

“They’ve lost their job or fallen on hard times financially, and they wouldn’t have really been able to make Christmas possible for their kids if it hadn’t been for the Toy Chest,” Velsmid says. “We’ve had a number of parents very emotionally expressing their gratitude for what we could do.”

A great event, the toy drive is “a reflection of the Knights of Columbus and the many ways they serve the community,” he adds.

“And Caroline’s life was a reflection of that. I actually knew Caroline personally. She was one of my daughter’s friends, and I just thought she was really a special girl. She had a very radiant personality; she was a beautiful person.”

Velsmid says Caroline would regularly bring her piggy bank money to the church and say “give it to someone who needs it.” She was always thinking of others.

“For someone that age to be doing that, and have that kind of awareness and moral compass, really, I mean, is something unusual. So, I was inspired by that, and I think everyone else in the community has been as well, just judging by the outpouring of support this drive has received since we put it in her name.”

If you want to help:

Organizers are seeking toys for all age groups, from newborns to about age 17. Popular items include sports equipment, remote control toys, dolls and action figures.

“Really, anything that people can contribute will be put to great use,” Velsmid says. “We could especially use toys for older kids and teens, as this age group is often harder to shop for.”

He adds, there’s usually “an abundance of board games, so while they are appreciated, we have plenty of those.”

Donations for The 12th Annual Caroline Previdi Foundation Toy Drive are being accepted until Saturday, December 14. Readers can drop donations at the St Rose Rectory, 46 Church Hill Road. Items can also be ordered through Amazon and delivered directly to the parish.

The Amazon Wish List contains hundreds of items and a wide range of price points.

The toys are distributed to families who are facing financial challenges during the holiday season.

“This is a way for us to bring joy and hope to children from Newtown and the surrounding areas,” he said. “We welcome parents or guardians from these communities to participate.”

Further details are available at strosechurch.com/caroline-previdi-toy-drive.

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Linda Tuccio-Koonz is a Newtown resident and longtime journalist whose work has appeared in newspapers, magazines and books.