When the Boss Becomes the Hero!

National Bosses Day is Sunday! That makes today perfect for sharing the great news that work place coat drives have put us over the 500-coat-drive milestone for this season! This week, employers like Crutchfield (VA), Jiffy Lube (MT), The Brace Place (NJ) and the Waterbabies Aquatic Program (QA) have registered their coat drives. To caring business owners, managers and decision-makers who provide the advertising, space and resources to collect and deliver coats in their communities, we say, "You're our heroes (Sunday and every day)!" Thank you!

The Momentum is Growing!

We recently received this heartwarming note from Eleanor from the Native American Children's Association. "Just the other day, my sister and I were on the Reservation observing... [an] annual celebration to honor a revered Chief. ...It was crowded with Native families who remembered us from the coat giveaway. ...We are writing to express our gratitude for your hard work. Your efforts are helping a new generation of gifted young people to succeed." As the temperatures dip across the country, we are mindful of the children waiting for school buses in only light sweaters or hoodies. Although the need is great, the momentum for coat drives is growing. Today, over 400 coat drives are registered in our system, and more sign up each day. Soon, thousands of us will be working together to warm communities...one coat, one child, one person in need...at a time.

Honoring OUR 10 Years of Exploration and Discovery!

Move over, Columbus! Today, as we honor the explorer and discoverer in all of us, we celebrate 10 years of discovering new ways to bring awareness to the need for warm coats and make it easy to donate a coat to someone in need. Over the years, countless friends have shared the best parts of themselves - their creativity, skills and dedication to helping others - with us. With you, One Warm Coat has grown from a one-location coat drive in San Francisco to a national network of thousands of drives each year! And in this 10th year, we are on pace to collect and distribute our 3 millionth coat! Thank you all for joining us on this journey. We were recently asked what the next 10 years will hold. Our answer? Infinite possibilities! C'mon along! Who knows what we'll discover together?

At Our Roots...

We're sometimes called a national movement with a "grass roots" base. We rather like that description! At our "roots" are the best community service agencies around, many of which are in small towns. For example, coat drive Organizers in the Princeton, IL area (pop. 7,500) can partner with the Zearing Child Enrichment Center, Inc. (ZCEC) this year to deliver warm coats to their neighbors. ZCEC is a service-oriented nonprofit agency that serves children through 12 years of age. They registered with One Warm Coat with the hope that coat drive Organizers will find them and be able to provide much-needed warm coats for the children they serve. Working together to warm communities... one coat at a time. Guess you could say, "It's in our roots!"

Warm Up With Us and Join the Drive!

"Warm up with us...!" With those words, officer Jessica Mercer of the Prince Georges County District V COPS Unit invited schools and agencies to create a super team to hold an area One Warm Coat drive. So many groups joined the project that Jessica had to contact Larinda for more banner and label packets! She wrote, "I am proud to share that... I am in need of an additional 20 packets as the rest of my participants come aboard. ...They are flying off the shelf!" We're proud of Jessica, too! With her warm invitation and obvious commitment, she's made loads of new friends in her community and is well on her way to making a big difference for those in need.

It's a 3-Peat! Burlington Coat Factory Customers Have Done it Again!

Sherri's off soon on an amazing road trip to deliver brand new warm coats to children across the country! It's a warm and wonderful "3-Peat" by customers checking out at Burlington Coat Factory's stores. They've donated over $135,000 to One Warm Coat for the purchase of new coats for kids! During October, Sherri joins a variety of agency teams to deliver the coats in person. She'll keep us updated on the cities she visits and the stories of the people who work to make a difference there. Thank you, Burlington Coat Factory patrons, for helping us spread the warmth again!