Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company declines to return contested toy drive money to Allegheny Township

The Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company won’t return $10,000 in Christmas toy drive donations once held in an Allegheny Township escrow account.

Instead, it will run Toys for Alle-Kiski Kids on its own for the second straight year.

A resolution passed by the fire company’s membership Tuesday also calls for a new nonprofit serving communities in the Kiski Area, Apollo-Ridge and Leechburg Area school districts to take over next year and use the funds to cover the cost of attaining IRS nonprofit status.

“The idea is going to take the politicking out of this, because it’s about getting toys to children,” said D.J. Zelczak, fire company president.

He added the fire company won’t start the nonprofit, but would be happy to join a consortium of fire departments. The resolution also mentions municipalities and school districts as possible organizers.

There are 17 communities between the three districts, several of which have shown interest in assisting with the drive, according to Zelczak.

“My belief is we’ll get full participation,” he said.

The political tension stems from an incident in August 2023 where three Allegheny Township officials signed away funds to the station without a public vote, sparking a township investigation and summary charges for violating the Second Class Township code.

The charges, filed against Supervisor Mike Korns, former Supervisor John Rennick Steele and former Township Manager Greg Primm, were dropped Sept. 26 at the request of Solicitor Craig Alexander.

Supervisors Jamie Morabito and Jeff Pollick voted in June to launch the inquiry about the check; Korns opposed it.

Morabito, in particular, has been vocal about his belief the money was essentially stolen. He still doesn’t agree with the fire company getting the money, but said it’s “water over the dam” at this point.

“In my opinion, the funds were improperly handled through Allegheny Township,” said Morabito, who was on the board along with Korns and Steele when the check went out. “It shouldn’t have went that way, but I was (in the minority). They did it and time was on their side.”

It’s unclear how Allegheny Township became the treasurer for Toys for Alle-Kiski Kids, which was started in 2014. It historically relied on the Kiski Area School District as well as local businesses, service organizations and residents for donations. And it’s up for debate whether Kiski Area School District students were meant to be the overwhelming beneficiaries.

Korns and Zelczak have said the money was intended for kids in the Kiski Area, Apollo- Ridge and Leechburg Area school districts. Morabito has said around 90% of the presents usually went to students in the Kiski Area School District, reflecting its leading role in the program.

Either way, once the Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company got a hold of the money, the district withdrew to start its own initiative, Toys for Cavs.

Superintendent Jason Lohr did not return requests for additional information about Toys for Cavs and to comment regarding Alle-Kiski Toys for Kids. A district web page about Toys for Cavs returns an error message.

Right now, the Toys for Alle-Kiski Kids account, kept separate from the fire company’s general fund, has a balance just over $10,000. That’ll go toward collecting or purchasing gifts and then distributing them to dozens of students.

Last year, the drive served 115 kids, according to Leechburg fire Chief John A. Foster — down from 200-plus when the Kiski Area School District was involved.

The fire company will be reaching out to guidance counselors with the Leechburg Area, Apollo-Ridge and — despite having its own drive — Kiski Area school districts in the coming weeks to find kids who could benefit.

“I don’t know what Kiski’s plans are,” Foster said. “We haven’t had any conversations with them.”

Community members can recommend families by contacting the fire company and providing a name, age and contact.

There are two toy collection events coming up: One at the Walmart in Harrison — likely in early December — and another at the Luminate Leechburg event Nov. 24. Monetary and toy donations also can be made directly to the fire company.

“Hopefully, all this publicity doesn’t make it hard to collect toys,” Foster said. “We’ll just go buy toys, if that’s what we have to do.”