Visualize your child not having a winter coat to wear when Manitoba’s legendary winter hits. Your children must alternate days of going to school because there is only one winter coat to share between them. We as parents do everything to provide the necessities for our children needed to ensure their safety and health. In our province one of those necessities is a warm winter coat. Unfortunately some families in our community have difficulty in providing for their children and have no choice but to rely on the generosity of others in our community to help keep their children warm and safe from the harsh winter elements.

Coats for Kids is an initiative of United Way of Brandon that asks our community to donate new or gently used winter coats. When we are all tired of winter and decide to start our spring-cleaning, that’s when we realize how much our kids have grown over the winter months. Don’t know what to do with those coats that are of no use to us anymore. That’s where the Coats for Kids program comes in. Donate those coats where you know they will go to good use, the children of our community.

Collection for coats runs the month of May and can be dropped off at any of our many collection sites throughout the city. Collection sites include: either City of Brandon Fire & Emergency Services stations, Shoppers Mall, The Town Center, Canex at CFB Shilo. Once all of the coats have been collected, they are sorted and then taken by Brandon Cleaners who generously provide cleaning for all of the coats before they are taken to our distribution depot. In the month of November we open the coat depot for two days and those greatly appreciated coats are distributed.

Along with the coats that are distributed to those children who would otherwise have to brave Manitoba’s legendary cold winter without a warm jacket to wear, the Canadian Red Cross provides toques and mittens. Thanks to the generosity of our community, over 400 coats have been collected and will be distributed in the fall of 2010.

The United Way of Brandon & District would like to thank all of its generous partners: Brandon Cleaners, Brandon Sun, Leech Printing, City of Brandon Fire & Emergency Services, Shoppers Mall, The Town Centre, Canex at CFB Shilo, 94.7 STAR FM & 880 CKLQ, KX96.1 & 101.0 the Farm, The Canadian Red Cross, Brandon home school liaison workers, our sorting volunteers, our depot volunteers, and the many people in our community who support this great program. For more information on this program please contact the United Way office at 571-8929.

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