Each year, back-to-school shopping creates a financial hardship for low-income families. Children outgrow coats quickly, but purchasing a new warm coat may not be possible for families who are already struggling to make ends meet. That’s where One Warm Coat steps in.
For more than 30 years, One Warm Coat has been providing free coats to children and adults in need, while championing clothing circularity, volunteerism, and community action. To date, they’ve distributed over 9 million coats and kept more than 22 million pounds of textiles out of landfills.
This back-to-school season, we encourage families, communities, groups and comapanies to:
- Donate coats: Go through closets and identify outerwear that is rarely worn or no longer fits and, instead of discarding them, visit the Donate Coats Map to find a coat drive nearby.
- Organize a coat drive: This is a great activity for anyone, but is especially impactful as a service-learning opportunity for schools, PTAs, youth sports, clubs, etc.
- Donate funds: Every $1 donated through the Coat Drive Program provides warmth for one person.
Shelter from the elements is a basic need, but for 37 million Americans living in poverty it’s not guaranteed. With thousands of coat drives and 1,500 nonprofit partners across all 50 states, One Warm Coat makes it easy to help families in every community.
“Last year, we distributed nearly 500,000 coats. But, 60% of our nonprofit partners reported they still did not receive enough coats to help all of the individuals and families they serve. We anticipate an even greater need for warm outerwear this fall and winter, with 84% of our nonprofit partners reporting an increased need in their community due to the current economic climate—marked by rising costs of essentials, housing instability, and stagnating wages. Low-income families are disproportionately affected by the high cost of living, which is impacting necessities like food, housing, healthcare, and utilities. For families already living paycheck to paycheck, even minor increases in expenses can mean hard choices between paying rent, keeping the lights on, or putting food on the table.” said President & CEO, Beth Amodio.
The need is urgent. But, if enough individuals and organizations pitch in, we can make a tangible difference in people’s lives by providing comfort and hope to those who need it most.