Video by Cooper Slough

By James Bell
Hays Post

From 0 to 99, kids of all ages will gather for the Hays Toy Show from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 16, at Big Creek Shopping Center.

The show is co-organized by Clint Straub, who has a pretty impressive collection.

“I usually sell toys and take that money and put it back into toys,” he said.

The show will feature vendors from across the U.S., people Straub refers to as a family.

“All these vendors are like family to all of us. A great group of people is what they are,” he said.

“They come from everywhere,” he said, but many will come from within Kansas for the local event.

Those vendors according to Straub frequently travel to shows, including the smaller Hays show, that feature toys of all kinds including tractors, Tonka trucks, dolls, antique toys, models, trains and homemade toys.

“It’s all kinds of toys. And then you could say plus,” he said.

While buying and selling toys brings adult collectors to the shows, children are also an integral part of the show.

“We need more kids there, because they are future collectors and that’s what is going to keep this going,” Straub said.

For Struab and many others, toy collecting starts early and lasts a lifetime.

“It’s just a taste. It’s kind of like farming. It’s in your blood,” he said.

He started as a collector in high school, something he said is common.

“If you’re going to collect, you’re going to collect at a young age,” Straub said. “I’ve always liked toys, even as a kid. I’ve never outgrown that and I never will.”

The show is open to the public. The cost of admission is $3.