In a small garage in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, David and Julie Martin are creating more than just wooden toys – they're crafting moments of comfort for children facing difficult circumstances.

Twin Lakes

In Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, David and Julie Martin dedicate four months each year to handcrafting wooden toys for children experiencing crises. Through their nonprofit, Twin Lakes Toymakers, they have produced over 1,700 toys since 2019, distributing them to police stations, hospitals, advocacy groups, and shelters. 

The toys are designed to provide comfort and a sense of control to children during challenging times, such as interviews following traumatic events or domestic disturbances. The Martins involve family members in the production process and aim to make 400 toys each season. They hope to expand their efforts by finding a permanent space to allow year-round production with community involvement.

Wisconsin couple crafts wooden toys to comfort children in crisis

Well, they are small wooden toys on wheels that have a huge impact on a child going through a difficult time for four months out of the year. The martins work hard nonstop to make sure these toys are completed so that kids facing a difficult situation can know that they are not alone during the summer months. The sounds of woodworking machines can be heard coming from this garage located in Twin Lakes. This is where a little bit of magic happens where wooden toys are made for kids in need. My wife and I do quite a bit of charity work. We never had kids of our own. So uh giving back, we've given back in various ways. But we also need to fill our time with something that keeps us out of trouble. David martin started the nonprofit organization Twin Lakes Toymakers after volunteering with a similar organization in florida and after receiving support from his wife julie and said to my wife, I said uh I'm gonna miss making toys. So she said, well why don't you uh rebuild our own nonprofit since 2019. They have made more than 1700 toys from police cars for the local police station to alligators and trucks for local advocacy groups, hospitals and shelters. So sometimes it's um their witness or a victim of either physical or sexual abuse and they're getting interviewed and then sometimes it's there, you know, the police, there's a domestic disturbance or even like a car accident or something. So to just bring a little bit of comfort when they're having a hard time and each animal and each car is purposely designed on wheels because that gives them something to control while they're while they're talking through or going through a certain situation. The martins are only in Wisconsin for four months out of the year. So during that time frame it is all hands on deck to make as many toys as possible. Our goal has always been to do in the four months that we're here, 400 toys a season. While david and his father in law are responsible for cutting the woods and making holes, julie's stepmother is in charge of all the tracing and for julie, she's responsible for the paint work. My goal is to have it look better than maybe a second grader. So they're not perfect, but they're the best that I can do something like this where it, you know, I prime it and then we painted a color and give it its detail. Once the steps are all complete, what is left are these beautiful handcrafted toys. But since every kid was only getting one, each one is important. The margins say, although this process takes a little bit of time in the end, it is all worth it. If it makes a child smile, it's really the smiles that we see when the kids get the toys and the pictures that are sent through us through facebook or someone will email us or whatever picture. And uh, just I think, I think the smiles motivates us mostly. Yeah, the martins hope to find a new space, maybe located inside a church where they can keep their tools and then the community can work on making these wooden toys year round.

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