Brad and Kimberly Paisley opened a free toy store to help families in need

Christmas gifts can be a luxury that not every family can afford. As a parent, it can be heartbreaking to realize that your children won’t have any presents to open on Christmas morning.

That is why country star Brad Paisley and his wife, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, are doing everything they can to make sure that every child in Nashville has a magical holiday season. They decided to create a pop-up toy store in which every toy would be free, meaning that parents could come and shop for their kids without having to pay a penny.

The Toy Store is part of The Store, the nonprofit grocery store that the couple opened in Nashville in March 2020 with Belmont University. The Store is just like a regular grocery store, but with one catch: After you’re done selecting your items, you don’t have to pay. The Store is a referral-based grocery store, meaning customers have to qualify for these services, rather than being open to the general public.

Last week, The Store announced on social media that it was expanding into The Toy Store for the holidays.

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“We’ve always wanted to see a Toy Store pop-up around the holidays that has the same framework and model as our grocery store, so that our customers can also shop for gifts for their families with dignity and choice,” the Paisleys said in a joint statement. “We are really excited to see it come together this year, and credit our wonderful staff, amazing volunteers, and energetic new CEO Collen Mayer for making it happen!”

In a video newsletter posted by The Store, Mayer talks about how the holidays can ignite shame in people who are struggling with financial worries. By giving people the ability to shop for toys in a shame-free way and without having to worry about paying for the item, The Store hopes to remove some of that stigma.

The pop-up event, which took place this weekend, turned out to be a massive success. The Store’s social media reported that the nonprofit is excited to do it again next year.

Although it is too late for you to donate to The Toy Store for this holiday season, you can still donate to The Store to help them support their mission in providing Nashville families with dignity, choices and healthy food.