Alumni Organize Coat Drive for Students in Need

Jan. 18, 2012 ~ Winter temperatures have arrived in Olathe, and students are especially thankful for the warm outerwear provided by the Olathe Alumni Annual Coat Drive. Organizers of the inaugural coat drive hoped to meet the needs of just 14 students whose names were submitted by their schools, so they were excited when more than 90 coats were collected.

"We wanted to provide for our homeless students first," said organizer Jill Tobler Erickson, Class of 1972. She and fellow organizer Bertha (Channel) Coffman, Class of 1973, recruited help from area churches and individuals.

District Community Liaison Heather (Devocelle) Schoonover, Class of 1988, contacted schools to learn the gender and size of coats needed.

"We had other donors give to other sites so that dictated where we sent the alumni donation," Schoonover said. "Our alumni filled a need in our schools – coats for kids.

"The original goal was to meet the needs at a high school, but the outpouring of support allowed us to reach a middle school and an elementary school," she added.

This winter's drive began in November, but Coffman and Erickson plan to begin the next drive in October.

"We were shocked at how many donations we received," Erickson said. "If entire classes want to collect coats and make a bulk donation, that's fine. We are asking for new or gently used coats."

Despite the successful 2011 coat drive, Erickson and Coffman have loftier goals for 2012.

"We want to provide an inventory of coats for students to find in their school without having to go to an outside resource," Erickson said.

Anyone interested in helping with the alumni coat drive may call Erickson at (913) 825-0307 or Schoonover at (913) 780-8233.

(Photo: School psychologist Ruth Pate and social worker Francie Pollom sort through coats donated to Olathe North High School.)