Sharing Warmth One Coat At A Time
Dear Friends of One Warm Coat,
It’s impossible to reflect on the past fiscal year without a feeling of heartache over the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic downturn. Across the country, millions of people faced health and financial challenges unlike anything most have ever experienced. Our nonprofit partners across all 50 states reported that the number of people requiring services increased by 30 to 50% from the previous year.
But in the face of a multitude of obstacles, nearly two thousand dedicated One Warm Coat Ambassadors found ways to hold coat drives, either by planning virtual drives or creatively organizing drives with social distancing and safety protocols in place.
In addition, thousands of donors made financial contributions that enabled One Warm Coat to continue to provide free coats to children and adults in need. In the past year, the number of individual donors to One Warm Coat more than doubled from the previous year. To me, this is a testament to the inherent kindness of human beings.
Businesses were in an uncharted state of financial uncertainty, yet some of our most loyal sponsors – Delta Airlines, J.Crew, and Joules to name a few – remained committed to supporting our mission. New corporations – such as Eddie Bauer, United Healthcare, and Rite Aid – stepped up to work with us to make a difference in supporting people and the planet.
Across the United States, there was a desire to help our neighbors and make an immediate impact on their well-being. Shelter from the elements, like clean water, food, and housing, is a basic need. As our nonprofit partners distributed coats, they were also distributing love and care. Thank you for bringing shelter, love, and care to more than 260,000 children and adults last year.
With warm gratitude,
Beth W. Amodio
President & CEO
At-A-Glance
One Warm Coat’s mission is to provide free coats to children and adults in need while promoting volunteerism and environmental sustainability.
How Our Programs Work
Our Values
Shelter from the elements is a basic human need along with nourishing food, drinkable water, and a safe place to sleep.
At One Warm Coat…
We believe
in the basic right to protection from the cold.
We provide
coats to people in need, free of charge and without discrimination or obligation.
We treat
the people we serve with dignity and respect.
We promote
sustainability through the reuse and repurposing of outerwear.
We create
connections in local communities by fostering volunteerism.
We appreciate
and honor our volunteers and donors.
Environmental Sustainabilty
Did you know that coats, jeans, and dresses take the most carbon to produce? Additionally, nearly 60% of all clothing, or 3 in 5 garments, ends up in landfills or incinerated every year.
As global concern about textile waste and sustainable practices continues to grow, One Warm Coat is proud to be part of the solution. Our programs provide warmth to people in need while promoting environmental sustainability and keeping more than 1 million pounds of clothing out of landfills each year.
Because promoting sustainability through the reuse and repurposing of outerwear is one of One Warm Coat’s core values, we are honored to work with many compassionate companies that are actively addressing this issue.
Coat Drive Program
We are Grateful For Our Coat Drive Ambassadors!
In a year where the need for coats was greater than ever, more than 1,800 individuals, organizations, schools and group, overcame many obstacles to hold coat drives in their communities during the 2020/2021 coat drive season. Because of the commitment and creativity of One Warm Coat’s Ambassadors, more than 260,000 children and adults received free coats.
School/Youth-Led Coat Drive
6th Grade Students at St. Jude the Apostle School, GeorgiaSixth graders at St. Jude the Apostle School in Georgia held a coat drive during morning drop-off. For several days in a row, they encouraged everyone to bring a coat to drop in a bin at the front of the school during morning carpool. The students also encouraged their school mates to draw a small picture or write a sweet note to place in the pocket of coats they donated. It was a big success, with 353 coats collected!
Business/Retail Coat Drive
Kaydan Wealth Management, MichiganKaydan Wealth Management held their 7th Annual One Warm Coat Drive. During this time, Kaydan Wealth Management has brought together it’s community to help collect and donate over 1,286 coats and $7,200.“ Danielle shared: “Every year, we look forward to working with One Warm Coat. There is a real need for coats in our community, especially due to the struggle caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. One Warm Coat’s program makes it easy for us to make a difference locally and spread much needed warmth all across the country. Normally, we have great big coat donation boxes in our lobby that give us the opportunity to thank our donors in person. This year, due to the pandemic, social distancing, and our team working remotely, we were more grateful than ever to be partnered with One Warm Coat. Their suite of resources made it easy for us to quickly adapt and print signage for a weather-proof bin to be placed outside of our Fenton Office so we could continue receiving coat donations.” – Danielle H., Director of Marketing and Communications
Employee Engagement Coat Drive
Moncur, Wisconsin“We have 25 employees working from home (since March 2020) and we wanted to do something for the community that was safe for our employees to participate in and helped the community, safely. We purchased a One Warm Coat drive box and set it in the lobby. And, even though people were working from home, they still brought in coats! The sweetest part is adding the notes to the pockets. One Warm Coat makes it very easy and encouraged us to do more than just give each other gifts in 2020. We enjoyed our experience very much.” Kelly M.
Social Service/Faith Based Coat Drive
Education Alliance and Americorps Coats4Kids Drive, West VirginiaIn honor of MLK Day of Service, Education Alliance and AmeriCorps held a coat drive called Coats4Kids from January 18-February 1. The goal was to get 400 articles of winter gear, but they received a total of 3,089 donations. Dr. Amelia Courts, president and CEO of The Education Alliance, said “COVID has really been devastating for some families in loss of employment, loss of connection with a lot of those social service resources. This is something special that we’ve taken on this year because we know there’s a need.”
Individual or Informal Community Coat Drive
Wendy M., California“My 7-year-old daughter and I held a coat drive with our church, Immanuel Lutheran Church in Los Altos. The coat drive was a wonderful opportunity for my daughter and I to support people in our community while involving members of our church in a “COVID- safe” way. We promoted the drive via our email newsletter and people were able to drop off coats in a box at the church. We had a great experience and collected 57 coats for children and adults.”
We are Grateful For Our Nonprofit Partners!
One Warm Coat’s network of nonprofit partner agencies and schools reported that the need for coats last year was greater than ever, with a 30-50% increase in demand for services. Our 1,000+ nonprofit partners accept and distribute the coats our Ambassadors collect and are an integral part of the Coat Drive program.
Coats are distributed for free and without discrimination or obligation to children and adults in need. We are grateful for our partners who are on the ground, in communities across the US, providing much-needed services and support.
Asociación Puertorriqueños en Marcha
PennsylvaniaWe serve families in Northern Philadelphia and One Warm Coat has been a great opportunity for us to help clothe children and families displaced from Puerto Rico. When I registered to become a partner agency, I could not have imagined the outpouring of support that we have received. Our children and families are very appreciative, as are we. Thank you One Warm Coat!
The Rise Foundation
IllinoisThe Rise Foundation received wonderful coats and we are so very thankful to you at One Warm Coat for choosing us and giving us the opportunity to bless more families in underserved communities. “It takes a village” especially in these uncertain times. With your contributions we plan on blessing families on a monthly basis providing random acts of kindness with a warm coat.
The Lighthouse Outreach
CaliforniaOur friends are warm because of your work! I so hope people understand that coats get stolen and wet in the night and we never want to turn someone away if they need another coat. To be homeless and cold should never happen anywhere. We love you One Warm Coat!
Crisis Coat Fund
One Warm Coat launched the Crisis Coat Fund in fall 2019 to address the needs of communities in crisis who are not able to receive coats through the Coat Drive Program alone. The Crisis Coat Fund enables One Warm Coat to respond quickly to emergency requests for coats by purchasing coats in bulk amounts, at a significantly discounted rate, and shipping the coats directly to where they are most needed.
“We are located in an area where the donated coats have been more than a blessing to our community of families and homeless individuals. Thank you One Warm Coat for keeping our ministry in mind and it is an absolute pleasure working with you guys! We thank you from the bottom of our hearts.“
Marjori Trujillo, Ministerios Rey de Reyes
Crisis Coat Fund recipient nonprofit partner
Antioch, California
Thank You To Our Crisis Coat Fund Donors!
Bulk Coat Program
One Warm Coat’s Bulk Coat Program allows companies to turn their excess stock, samples, irregular and overruns into the gift of warmth. One Warm Coat accepts these donations and distributes them throughout the county.
“On behalf of the Episcopal Community Services and the vulnerable people we serve, thank you for the fleece jackets, puffed jackets, and variety of coats, which we received as part of the One Warm Coat partnership. We have distributed the coats to individuals who are living in San Francisco’s Project Roomkey Hotels, as well as individuals in our new Residential Reentry Program, which provides a room, meals, and services to those exiting California’s Justice system. These clients, in particular, come to us with only the clothes on their backs, so your coats are a blessing. One of the clients who received a coat said “This is amazing! Now, I can be warm as I go about making my future life! Thank you!” Another of our clients shared, “This is great. This is really great. I needed a coat. I need everything, but I really needed a coat. It’s cold out there.”
Beth Stokes, Executive Director of Episcopal Community Services
Bulk Coat Program recipient nonprofit partner
California
“We are extremely grateful to take advantage of this opportunity. The ongoing pandemic has greatly increased the needs in the community and to receive a bulk donation of coats has helped tremendously. I’m so glad I took our van to pick up the donations. There were a lot of big boxes filled with items that are much needed.”
Mitchell Raff, Clothing the Homeless
Bulk Coat Program recipient nonprofit partner
California
Thank You To Our Bulk Donors!
One Warm Coat Day
Because of our wonderful supporters, #OneWarmCoatDay 2020 was a huge success!
Generous donors gave $32,000, which provided warmth to 32,000 children and adults in need; hundreds of individuals and organizations posted and shared on social media to spread awareness; people and businesses registered to hold coat drives, and many others donated coats!
Lands’ End and The Weather Channel were the official sponsors for the One Warm Coat Day. For each Squall Coat sold online and in stores on October 1, Lands’ End donated one new outerwear item to One Warm Coat. In addition, Lands End encouraged customers to donate coats at their retail locations and receive 50% off one in-store outerwear item throughout the month of October.
The Weather Channel created a special promotional spot that aired during the announcement of their Winter Storm names. The Weather Channel’s on-camera meteorologists and their pets showed their support by sharing messages through their social platforms using #onewarmpet.
Save the date for One Warm Coat Day 2021 — October 7, 2021.
We are Grateful For Our Generous Donors!
Every $1 donated to One Warm Coat
warms 1 person!
In the past year, the number of individual donors to One Warm Coat more than doubled! Monetary donations support our programs and facilitate the collection and distribution of coats to our neighbors in need throughout the country.
Church in California
Every Sunday we choose an organization that we believe does good work to support. We give this donation with humility and gratitude and are thankful for the incredible work that you do. We recognize now, more than ever, people are struggling due to the pandemic and economic recession. We stand with you in solidarity in working to provide warm coats to people and echo “No one should go cold this winter”.
Donor in Minnesota
Thank you very much for your service and commitment to others. God Bless.
Donor from Facebook
This is our 5th year working with One Warm Coat, and thanks to your big hearts, we’ve been able to donate over 1,300 coats and spread the warmth to different schools, churches, and non-profits these past few years. Thank you for being part of our family tradition.
Donor in Oregon
I cannot donate a coat because all of mine were burned up in the Holiday Farm wild fire. However, I can afford to support your programs. Please accept this check to give warmth to someone in need.
Donor in Texas
I hope this small donation will help someone this winter that needs a coat to stay warm. Many people will need coats this winter, as the unemployment is at record highs. I hope your efforts to help people are going well.
Donor in New York
Thank you for keeping the vulnerable warm!
We are Grateful For Our Corporate Sponsors & Donors!
Thank You To Our Corporate Sponsors!
Eddie Bauer shared warmth with more than 70,000 children and adults.
Delta Airlines shared warmth with more than 33,500 children and adults.
Joules shared warmth with more than 13,000 children and adults.
Nobis shared warmth with more than 10,000 children and adults.
J.Crew shared warmth with more than 50,000 children and adults.
KTVU, The UPS Stores, and Big O Tires shared warmth with more than 22,000 children and adults.
Quilted Northern shared warmth with more than 10,000 children and adults.
Thank You To Our Corporate Donors!
Financial Highlights
Summary Of Donations
| In-Kind Contributions | $1,634,222 |
| Corporate & Foundation Contributions | $341,874 |
| Individual Contributions | $294,907 |
| Other Revenue | $60,468 |
| Coat Drive & Agency Registration Fees | $8,222 |
| Total | $2,339,696 |
Summary Of Expenses
| Program | $1,975,101 |
| Development | $100,182 |
| Administrative | $57,625 |
| Total | $2,132,908 |