It is that time of year again, but really, that time of year is all year.

The Suffolk News-Herald Cheer Fund is open for donations all year long, but efforts to drum up donations really ramp up in November in preparation for the Christmas season.

The Cheer Fund collects donations each year to fund the purchase of toys given out by the Salvation Army to local families. These families apply in October of each year, and their need is vetted by officials. Parents visit the toy store the week before Christmas and choose toys for each of their children to find under the tree on Christmas morning.

For decades, the Cheer Fund has been part of the Suffolk community’s answer to how these children will be helped. Every year, thousands of children receive toys purchased directly with the Cheer Fund donations, and every one of those children lives in Suffolk.

The Cheer Fund has always been successful because of the faithful support of individuals and organizations throughout Suffolk. We rely on each of you to help us meet our goal each year. This year, that goal is $40,000 — and the Cheer Fund will help provide toys for thousands of Suffolk children by the time all is said and done.

If you’ve helped make this effort a success in the past, we sincerely thank you, and we humbly ask that you consider a similar donation again this year. If you’ve never supported the Cheer Fund before, there’s no time like the present. We really could use your help making Christmas a bit merrier for underprivileged children in Suffolk.

To donate to the Cheer Fund, send a check to P.O. Box 1220, Suffolk, VA 23439 or bring it to our office, 130 S. Saratoga St., from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

We will list your donation in the newspaper, but it can be marked “anonymous” if you like. Donations may be made in honor of or in memory of someone. If you bring the check to our office, we’ll even take your picture as you hand it to one of our staff.

For more information on the Cheer Fund, call 934-9609.