I got this email yesterday and I'm hoping somebody here might be able to help or will pass this on to friends/neighbors/relatives who might help:
Garfield School has 12 children coming to school without coats on this year. I couldn't believe that with all the coat drives and the coats donated to Goodwill and Salvation Army, so I called Garfield School this morning and they put me in touch with the Social Worker from Garfield and Franklin School.
She says there are actually 10 kids at Garfield and 6 kids at Franklin that need winter coats! One of the bigger boys has a coat, but it's so small, it won't zip closed. Kids don't always have a way to get to the stores and sometimes the parents aren't worried enough about their children to drive them to the Salvation Army or the other places, let alone have $5 to give them to buy a coat at Goodwill - if there are any. We don't always know all the facts behind the faces of these children. But I do know I hate to be cold!
She gave me some sizes needed.
BOYS - 2 are needed in SIZE 16 (the largest child's size) and 4 needed in SIZE 10-12
GIRLS - 2 needed in SIZE 12-14
Actually, she rattled on with all the sizes and what it boils down to is that she mostly needs sizes 10-16.
If you have any coats of this size or actually any size (she has seen some of the Mom's bring the children in the morning wearing a blanket instead of a coat) and they are good, warm, clean coats, please take them to Garfield School, 1409 Wisconsin Street, Muscatine, IA. Maybe you could put them in a bag with a note saying "FOR MRS. JOHNSON'S COAT DRIVE" on it. And if you don't want to drive clear down to the South End of town, drop them on my front porch at 615 West 3rd Street. I'll get them to her. And if they have a rip, write a note and I'll fix it before taking it down. I'm not too good at replacing snaps or zippers though.
She says if she gets too many or ones that don't fit anyone, she'll save them for next year.
We happen to be going to the Quad Cities this afternoon, so we will stop and buy a boy's size 16, but would you please dig in your closets or stop by a store and buy a child's winter coat for Garfield and Franklin Schools?
I'm sure there are other children in the other schools, and I may call Jefferson, knowing it is also one of the poorer schools in town, but right now let's get Garfield and Franklin taken of and I'll keep in touch with you if I find any other places that we angels of Pam's Estate Services Email List are needed.
