PROVINCETOWN — Taped to the walls at the Crown & Anchor for last Wednesday’s 24th annual Kook Toy Drive were images of pogo sticks (available for a donation of $50), tricycles ($60), and a toboggan ($100). Right next to that array of toys were photos of a bag of groceries ($150) and a certificate for $200 worth of heating oil.
The toy drive is evolving. “I’m morphing it into the Kook Family Fund,” said Marc Guerrette, who took over management of the event this year from Jennifer White.
Kook was the name Scott Martino gave his annual “Townie party.” When White joined him as host in 1998, they added Kook Toy Drive to the fun. Partygoers donated $5 at the door or brought an unwrapped toy for a family in need.
Over the years, Kook has expanded from just providing toys to funding activities like art classes for local youth at PAAM. The arts are “near and dear to our hearts” because of Kook’s roots in the drag community, White said.
Kook now delivers essentials like groceries and fuel and helps families with rent at times. “Needs have changed,” Guerrette said.
“People think that there is no poverty in Provincetown,” said White, but in fact, “it’s incredibly hard to keep your head above water.”
White said Kook works closely with the Provincetown Schools to identify community needs. The school sends a form home with every child for families to fill out, White said. They receive about 40 back each year with notes that don’t reveal identities, just the details needed to help match children with the right gifts. A form might say, “Girl, age eight, size 10, wants a new bike and also needs a new coat and mom is unemployed, or dad is sick,” said White. The gifts are distributed to parents to give to their kids on their own schedule.
As of Dec. 16, this year’s toy drive had raised $15,000. Guerrette said most of the funds came in the form of $5, $10, and $20 donations.
On stage at Kook this year at the Crown & Anchor was a cast of longtime performers including Susan Goldberg, Billy Hough, Thirsty Burlington, and Mona Mour.
Guerrette is excited about his new role organizing Kook. “I was never a winter person,” he said. “I was always elsewhere,” but he’s adjusted after moving to Provincetown four years ago. When he learned White was ready to pass the baton, he said, “I just wanted to make sure that this tradition didn’t die.”
White lives in Eastham now but spent 28 years in Provincetown, and Kook remains an outlet for her love of the place.
“It warms my heart,” said White. “It’s one of my favorite days of the year.”
