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  Message From Jennifer
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My first few months as President have flown by. It's hard to believe that the summer is ending and we are beginning a new coat drive season. When I reflect on the past 10 years and the many thousands of Organizers, Agencies and Sponsors who have supported our work and made a difference in their communities, I am awed and honored to be part of the team - your team.
Together, we have provided over 3 million people with a warm coat of their own. Yet, the need for coats is even greater, and the temperatures are about to drop. The summer droughts, wildfires and flooding brought destruction to the lives of thousands. Even more families are living at or below the poverty level. Meeting the cost of food, home heating and transportation turns the purchase of warm coats for the family into a budget "extra."
This Fall, as you reach into the closet for your own warm coat, we ask you to remember the parent whose coat is worn past wearing and the child whose coat is too small. If you've Organized a One Warm Coat drive before, we ask that you do it again. If there's an extra warm coat in your closet, please donate it to an Agency near you. Together, we can keep our communities warm this winter...one coat at a time.
With heartfelt thanks,
Jennifer |
| The Need |
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 Need is very personal; it has a name and a face. This year, we'll share some of the letters and calls we receive from people who need our help.
Diana and TJ: Last winter, Diana phoned us from Toledo with the hope of locating warm coats for herself and her son. Diana has a heart condition and had recently had foot surgery. She was unable to work. TJ, a growing 6-year old, had outgrown last winter's coats. Diana found us while searching the internet for resources that could help her provide for her son. Thanks to all of YOU, moms like Diana are able to find warm coats for their kids each winter, in Toledo and in a community near you. |
| Getting Organized |
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 New Donation Envelope for Coat Drives
How can donors make monetary contributions at a coat drive? Our Organizers often ask this. Team member Larinda happily announces a new way for coat drive donors to send monetary contributions while at your coat drive (and for you to mail all of them at once.) Look for the donation envelope inside your Promo Pack. Before the donors leave your coat drive, be sure that checks are made payable to One Warm Coat. Contributors may also enter their donations through our website. Thank-you letters will be sent directly from One Warm Coat. |
| Agencies With Drive |
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 Sharing the Warmth
Our Agency partners work "on the ground" in communities across the country to deliver coats directly to people in need. They are a critically important part of our work. As more and more Organizers make plans to hold coat drives, we often find that we need more Agencies to help deliver the coats!
If you are already part of a One Warm Coat Agency, please make sure that your agency record is accurate. To notify us that you need to make changes, email us. If you know of another community service organization whose clients would benefit from receiving warm coats - either in your area or in an area that is currently underserved - please encourage them to go to our website and register as a One Warm Coat Agency. Thank you for helping us to "spread the warmth" and ensure that coat drive Organizers can find our Agencies quickly and easily! |
