Well, I have bad news and sort of good news. Since I work in electronics, here's what I can tell you. The bad news, basically the battery contacts are shot. They are plated (usually with nickel) and once the corrosion from the battery hits them the layer of plating then is gone. Once this happens the natural passing of electricity from the battery and the air will cause the contacts to continue to corrode.
The sort of good news, is that if you can use a soldering iron and are just a wee bit brave, you can replace them. The contacts are readily available at electronics stores like Radio Shack. Since they are hand me downs, you can take the case apart and try to replace them. As far as cleaning the crusty battery acid. Most of it can be flaked away from the plastic. Very careful use of a some baking soda and water will help break it loose. DO NOT GET ANY OF THIS SOLUTION ON ANY OF THE ELECTRONICS. If you do, it is ruined.
Basically, you are more or less out of luck. But you might be able to save them if you want to try the above. Since they were free, it's worth the try. I have saved a number of things with corroded batteries this way. Success rate is about 50%.
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