The Portland Press Herald Toy Fund aims to provide toys for 7,000 children in Cumberland, York, Sagadahoc, Lincoln and Knox counties. Applications are being accepted and readers of the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram are once again encouraged to put smiles on children’s faces during the holiday season.

Applications can be made at pressheraldtoyfund.org. Donations can also be made on the website or checks can be made out to the Portland Press Herald Toy Fund and mailed to P.O. Box 7310, Portland, ME 04112.

The campaign’s fundraising goal this year is $300,000. The total raised so far is $2,975.

Each day of the toy fund campaign, the Press Herald will run letters from applicants:

I am writing for my daughter, who is 8 years old and in the 3rd grade. I am a single mother and on disability. Extra Christmas help would be very much appreciated, as it always is, due to our low income.

I am a full-time student at Southern Maine Medical Center and working on getting my health on track so I can eventually support myself and my daughter.

We value holidays with each other and family, and just like every child, my daughter looks forward to Christmas mornings with surprises under the tree!