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The Kiwanis Club of Olney is taking part in the Toys for Tots collection for the 25th year.

"We always look forward to this program that has been going on for 25 years," organizer Mike Green said. "Along with the CPR classes that we teach, it is the most rewarding experience of the year for our members. Serving so many children, both those who are needy and those who are sick, allows us to share just a little bit of the good fortune which we Olney residents enjoy."

Green called 2008's toy drive a "banner year — both in the number of toys collected and numbers of organizations and children served."

In addition to the annual donation to the U.S. Marine Corps, which nationally accepts toys for the program, toys are donated to local organizations Linkages to Learning, the NIH Cancer Center, Georgetown University's Pediatric Unit, RICA, the Avery Road Women's Shelter, Urban Housing of Montgomery County, the Montgomery County Recreation Department, the Toby Town Recreation Site and Health and Human Services of Germantown.

Numerous church organizations, including Oakdale Emory United Methodist Church, also receive donated toys to give to need children.

The Olney Kiwanis effort began in 1984 when Graham Little, a community activist, asked the Kiwanis Club to take over collection and distribution of toys for Montgomery County, Green said.

Since then, more than 30,000 toys have been collected, he said.

The Kiwanis Club is aided in its collection by the Sherwood Key Club, the Boy Scouts, local businesses and other community organizations.

Toys can be dropped off at any of the businesses assisting with donations, including all Sandy Spring Bank offices, the Toy Store in Olney, Fletcher's service center in Olney, Town and Country Vets, Olney Library, Sherwood High School and more. Some 80 to 100 collection boxes are located throughout the county.

For more information, call Green at 301-924-5374.

A time of healing

A retreat for children whose parents have divorced will be held Saturday at St. Elizabeth School in Rockville.

Sponsored by the Archdiocese of Washington's Office of Family Life, the program will offer young people an arena for discussing their feelings and experiences and teach them coping skills, said retreat presenter Lynn Casella Kapusinski, author and founder of the Ellicott City-based nonprofit Faith Journeys Foundation.

It is open to children of all faiths.

Kapusinski will bring her own experience as a child of divorce to the retreat, she said. She was 11 years old when her parents separated. After going through her own period of denial, adjustment and renewed faith, she established Faith Journeys with the mission of helping children work through their feelings in a peer-support setting and bring God and forgiveness into their lives, she said.

"There was nothing around when I grew up," she said. It was her faith in God that helped her get through the experience of her parents' divorce, she said.

Kapusinski is also the author of "Now What Do I Do? A Guide to Help Teenagers with Their Parents' Separation or Divorce," "Making Your Way After Your Parents Divorce" and "When Parents Divorce ... How to Comfort Teens and Young Adults."

She hopes the retreat will become "a healing day" for the young people who attend.

To register, visit the archdiocese's "News and Events" page at www.adw.org/news. For more information, call the Office of Family Life at 301-853-5337 or Kapusinski at 410-744-0305.

St. Elizabeth School is located at 917 Montrose Road.

All aboard in Rockville

The Rockville Lions Club will hold its 19th Annual Model Train Show Saturday and Sunday at the Rockville Senior Center, 1150 Carnation Drive.

The Train Show is one of the club's primary fundraising events and provides a setting for members to talk with the public about the organization's programs in the community.

"While many organizations solicit donations for efforts far removed from the local community, the Rockville Lions have for more than 71 years supported programs close to home by providing eyeglasses for those that cannot afford them, conducting vision screening for preschool children and sponsoring youth baseball and Scouting programs," said Craig Cano, who oversees the Train Show. "We see ourselves as a partner with the community, relying on its generous support of this show and our December Citrus Fruit Sale to help make Rockville a little better for everyone."

The popular event will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.

The show features several rooms of large operating displays of model railroads: Z, N, HO and O scales; a garden railway in G-Scale; a Lionel modular setup; and a Lego layout provided by local model railroad associations.

The cost of the show is $5 for adults, $3 for children or $10 maximum for a family, with all net proceeds going to support the club's charitable efforts. For more information and directions to the show, visit the www.rockvillelions.org.

Celebrating African Palms

at St. John's Church

A celebration of African Palms USA will be held 8:45 to 11 a.m. Sunday at St. John's Church in Olney.

The event will feature a presentation of African Palms' recent trip to Tanzania, Africa, at 9 o'clock, and guest speakers at both the 8 o'clock and 10 o'clock services.

African Palms USA was founded in 1965 by an Anglican missionary in Masasi, in southeastern Tanzania, with the goal of turning an African product — a palm cross — into a source of income and humanitarian aid for Africa. The net proceeds from the sale of the crosses, and all donations received, are returned to Africa in the form of non-denominational self-help grants to meet basic human needs.

Over $1.8 million has been awarded in grants since 1976, when St. John's Church became the primary distributor of the crosses.

St. John's Church is located at 3427 Olney-Laytonsville Road. For more information, visit www.africanpalmsusa.org or call 301-774-2832.

The last market of the season

The Olney Farmers and Artists Market will be open for the last time this season Sunday at Olney Town Center, Olney-Sandy Spring and Spartan roads in Olney.

The market will run 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

For more information, visit www.olneyfarmersmarket.org.

Final fall session

at Oakley Cabin

Maryland Emancipation Day will be celebrated Saturday at Oakley Cabin as the final program of the season.

The county Department of Parks offers programs at the historic Oakley Cabin African American Museum and Park in Brookeville to put the spotlight on life during that time period.

For more information, visit www.OakleyCabin.org.

Olney Help is ready

to lend a hand

Olney Help, now in its 40th years of service, provides food assistance to individuals and families in need in the greater Olney community.

For assistance, call 301-774-4334. Calls are returned Mondays through Fridays. Volunteers provide free delivery and all information is considered confidential.

King of the Road

set for Nov. 15

More than 500 participants are expected on Nov. 15 for the fifth annual King of the Road 5K Run/1 Mile Walk /Kids' Fun Run benefiting TLC — The Treatment and Learning Centers, a Rockville-based non-profit organization offering educational, therapeutic and vocational services to children and adults with special needs.

Sponsored by King Automotive Group, the event is anticipated to raise more than $30,000 for 2,000 children and adults from the community that TLC serves each year.

The USATF-certified course will begin and end at TLC's Katherine Thomas School at 9975 Medical Center Drive, and wind through the Shady Grove Life Sciences Complex in Rockville.

Race-day registration will open at 7:30 a.m. The Kid's Fun Run will start at 8:30 a.m., followed by the 5K at 9 a.m.

Packets can be picked up between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Nov. 14 at Fleet Feet Sports Gaithersburg in the Kentlands.

Participants can register online at www.ttlc.org/race.htm. For more information, contact Debbie Ezrin, director of development, via email at dezrin@ttlc.org or by calling 301-424-5200, ext. 155.

If you have an interesting note about the people and the events of our community, send it to Judith Hruz, Editor, The Olney Gazette, 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, Md. 20877, or e-mail it to jhruz@gazette.net. Our fax numbers are 301-670-7182 or 301-670-7183. Deadline is 5 p.m. Thursday for consideration for the following week. All items are subject to space availability.