Giles' Coats for Kids needs your old coats

Wednesday, December 6th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

With the weather turning colder, coats become a necessity. But not everyone can afford coats for their family. You can be a part of the solution by participating in Gilesâ€™ Coats for Kids.

The racks are looking bare in the Catholic Charities' back room. It's the room that serves as the storefront for the Coats for Kids program. As fast as the coats come in, they're going out. â€œSo far this year we've gone through 1,800 coats,â€ said Catholic Charities Quentin Henley. â€œAnd the demand for coats is growing as the weather gets colder."

The coats are donated from all over Green Country. People drop them off at local Yale Cleaners locations. The company cleans and mends the coats, and Catholic Charities distributes them to the people who need them. The Coats for Kids program has been successful for 15 years, and it has kept thousands of people warm through the winters. â€œWe have a really good repor with it,â€ said Yale Cleaners spokesperson Lenda Schoemann. â€œEveryone seems to jump in, and do it. We had more than 10,000 coats donated last year, so we're going for that goal again this year."

Donors get coupons toward dry cleaning, but that's just a small reward compared to what it means to the families in need. â€œWith the Christmas season upon us, a lot of people are trying to stretch the dollars they have," Henley said. â€œThey have to choose between food shelter, clothing or coats, and it's a hard choice for them to make."

The list of families who have already came by to get coats this week is long. With the weather turning colder, Catholic Charities is expecting dozens of people to stop by this week. But the question is, will there be enough coats when they show up?

Yale Cleaners is hopeful many more coats will be donated. They will accept donations at any Yale Cleaners location through December 31st.