A Legacy of Giving: Coats for Community
For nearly four decades, United Way Peterborough & District has been organizing the annual Coats for Community winter clothing drive, collecting and distributing tens of thousands of winter garments. Last year alone, the generosity of Peterborough residents led to the donation of 1,844 coats and 1,272 mitts and hats, providing warmth to over 500 individuals.
With the demand for winter gear increasing each year, this new partnership with PATH will allow the program to reach even more people who need help staying warm during the winter months.
2024 Coats For Our Community
PATH has created a strong clothing and essential items donation program called the Community Clothing Hub, which supports agencies like:
- One City Peterborough
- Elizabeth Fry Society of Peterborough
- YES Shelter for Youth & Families
This program, initially developed by Elizabeth Fry Society and PATH with United Way funding in 2022/2023, has grown into a vital part of the community. Volunteers at the PATH location (385 Lansdowne Street East) accept clothing donations, clean, mend, and sort the items, and distribute them to frontline service providers.
Items not suitable for those experiencing homelessness, such as formal wear or designer clothing, are donated by PATH to Vinnie’s – St. Vincent De Paul Thrift Store to benefit community programs and local causes.
2023 Coats for our Community
Thank You!
Your generous donations, to our 2023 Coats for our Community initiative allowed 527 people to come into the beautiful, centrally located space donated by Murray Streeet Baptist Church on Saturday, November 4th to select the winter coats, snowpants and accessories they needed to keep their families warm this winter!
A total of 1844 coats, jackets, snowpants and winter wear were distributed locally along with 1272 handknit mittens, hats and accessories generously provided by the Mitts for Kids volunteer knitters!
We want to send a special thank you to St. Vincent De Paul Thrift Stores in Peterborough and Lakefield, for once again, sharing their space for our 2023 collection, Global Point Logistics for their amazing storage facility and truck rental, PVNC Catholic District School Board and Windsor’s Dry Cleaners who volunteered to be a community collection point in the month leading up to our collection weekend and to IG Wealth Management, St. Anne’s School, St. Paul’s in Lakefield and Suzi Home Maker who coordinated staff collection drives to drop off!
A huge thank you to the Mitts for Kids knitters who distributed a record number of warm, made with love accessories:
Ennismore Senior Knitting Club, Carole Berry, Jean Cameron, Linda Chopping, Lynn Creech, Karen Drinkwalter, Debbie East, Carey Hogan, Paulette Packingham, Jill Smallwood, Margaret Tippett, Janet Twigg
