Joshua Marriott and Ashley Bagley sort through toys collected for Cardon Children's Medical Center. Photo: Jessica Slater/ASU
Cardon Children’s Medical Center in Mesa will have an ample supply of toys for their young patients this holiday season, thanks in part to a project initiated by a student in the Del E. Webb School of Construction Programs.
Joshua Marriott, a senior in the concrete industry management program, led an effort that obtained donations from more than a dozen local construction, engineering and concrete companies, and partnered with the Arizona Builders Alliance annual toy drive to collect truckloads of toys.
Marriott began the drive with some fellow members of ASU’s student chapter of the American Concrete Institute (ACI).
“We wanted students and the local construction industry to work together to help the community,” he says. “This being Christmastime, we decided we wanted to help needy children have a good holiday.”
The ACI student chapter provided funds to buy posters to promote support for the toy drive.
As word spread, the director of the state ACI professional chapter, Jim Rodgers, solicited donations from his group.
James Ernzen, an associate professor in the Del E. Webb School of Construction Programs, asked students in his classes to contribute.
Other seniors in the construction industry management program worked with Marriott.
Amanda Nichols helped make initial contacts with construction industry companies to ask for their support. Ashley Bagley and Kim Rahberger helped gather the donated toys and prepare them for delivery.
More than 900 toys were contributed by ASU students and faculty and local companies, including Suntech, Cemex, Drake, Ninyo and Moore, the ACI Arizona Chapter, CSW, Amec, Cal Portland, the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering student advising office, Perlman and Perlman, Climatech, TDI, Kortman Electric, Sundt, T-Pac, DP Electric, Rural Electric and others.
With additional donations from Arizona Builders Association members, about 2,000 toys are being delivered to the medical center a few days before Christmas.
