Annual Giles' Coats For Kids Campaign Underway

By Jeffrey Smith, The News On 6

TULSA, OK -- Hundreds of Tulsa area children know they'll be nice and warm this winter thanks to an annual event sponsored by The News On 6.

The 23rd Annual Giles' Coats for Kids campaign kicked off Monday afternoon in North Tulsa.

The News On 6, Yale Cleaners and Catholic Charities has teamed up over the years to give out more than 22,000 winter coats. Catholic Charities is using the campaign to debut their new facility and to give back to families hit hard by the recession.

"I can't really afford to go anywhere else, so it really is important to me," said Tabitha Flores, a mother.

For the first time in her life, Tabitha Flores has turned to Catholic Charities for help. She works as a part-time cafeteria worker and is having a hard time finding a fulltime job.

"I am a single mom, so it really is hard, trying to get everything taken care of, plus the holidays, and every little other thing that happens. So it is kind of hard, it's been a bad year," said Flores.

She's one of 500 families who turned out for the opening day of the Giles' Coats for Kids campaign. The event was held on the new Catholic Charities campus in North Tulsa.

"Still kind of getting a feel for the place. We don't even have our phones or computers hooked up yet," said Matt DeWeese, Catholic Charities.

Matt DeWeese says they opened the building just in time. They helped about 200 more families compared to last year's opening day.

"I think the economy slowing down affects everybody. Jobs are hard to come by. Money is tight, and sometimes people have to go without," said Matt DeWeese.

But one thing children shouldn't go without is a warm winter coat. That's why Felicia Walton says she has turned to charity for the first time.

"It's a big turnout, more than I expected, but when you think about the way the economy is, it's to be expected. A lot of people out here who need help, who in the past, didn't," said Felicia Walton, a mother.

The campaign is just getting started. You can donate a gently used winter coat to any Yale Cleaners location in Tulsa through the end of the year. 

The Giles' Coats for Kids campaign gives out 10,000 winter coats every year for children and adults in need. Families can stop by Catholic Charities to pick up a coat through mid-January.

11/23/2009  Related Story: Williams Company Makes Generous Donation To Giles Coats For Kids