The Salvation Army’s Coats for Kids Program Keeps Families’ Hearts and Bodies Warm

For the 29th year, The Salvation Army in Cobourg and Port Hope, Ont., hosted the Coats for Kids program. This event provides families in their community with much-needed winter coats and gear ahead of the colder seasons.

Community and Family Services Manager at Port Hope, Lisa Graham, has co-led this program for nine years. She says that while the main goal is to provide children with coats, the program goes beyond that.

“Our main target is young families with children from infancy to high school age. We do take adult coats as well. Sometimes the parents need coats too, but they usually pick for their kids before they look for themselves,” Lisa explained.

Coats for Kids not only encourages coat donations but also general winter gear as well.

Helping Families Altogether

Since most winter wear donations are for children, parents are sometimes pleasantly surprised when they can leave with something for themselves. Lisa fondly remembers an encounter with a single mother who was overjoyed and grateful for the program.

“She got coats for her children. Then I showed her a rack with adult coats, and she was moved. She actually broke down into tears, she found everything she needed. She hugged me! She came in hoping to get one or two coats and was able to outfit her whole family plus herself,” Lisa shared.

Even though the program’s distribution period is still underway, Lisa predicts the number of winter items given out will be higher than before due to the current cost of living.

“It’s understandable that families are going to be more in need. They have to ask themselves; do I buy food for my family or winter clothes for my children, you know, they shouldn’t have to choose,” Lisa said.

Community Help is Key

The Coats for Kids program has partnerships with various local businesses. Each business plays a different role in making sure the event runs smoothly. Some businesses serve as drop-off locations, while others help promote the event. To ensure the quality of donations, The Salvation Army inspects each item before sending it to a professional cleaner.

While the right sizes available for everyone may not always be available, Lisa has a solution for this, thanks to the monetary donations that Coats for Kids receives.

“If they aren’t able to find the size that they need. I ask them to fill out a form so we know what they have received and what they didn’t. Then I can go purchase something new and in the size they need. So we do accept financial donations for the Coats for Kids program,” Lisa said.

Although the event runs once a year, The Salvation Army accepts winter gear donations all year around as the need is always there.

By Juan Romero