The members of the American Legion Auxiliary, Henry B. Pratt Jr. Unit 15 of Caribou are planning for their annual “Coats for Kids and Families” event, which will be held Oct. 30 and 31, 2015.
This will be the 12th year the post has helped neighbors in need of winter coats, and last year 1,163 items were given away over two days, all donated.
Once again members are asking anyone who is able to donate items for this event. They will clean and sort all of the clothing items, which will be placed on tables in the Legion Hall.
“We can never have enough winter clothing items for this purpose,” said Jessica Feeley, project chair. “This event is open to anyone in our neighboring communities that needs assistance. There is no charge for anything; we simply ask to count the number of items being taken.”
Last winter was brutally cold for an extended period of days, she said. The Boston Globe even sent a reporter to Caribou to document the effects of the “cold snap.” What resulted was an article explaining how the northeastern-most city in the United States was also the coldest city. The reported detailed how children were not allowed to board the afternoon buses without being properly dressed. This list included a coat, snow pants, boots, hat, and gloves or mittens.
“This is an expensive list, especially if a family has more than one child,” added Feeley. “We are in desperate need of all of these items, in any size from infant to 5X for men and women, but especially those which must be worn by young, school-age children.”
The legion is asking for used items in good condition. Donated items can be left in marked boxes at the following Caribou locations: the post home on Sweden St., Caribou Wellness Center on Bennett Drive, Reno’s Restaurant and County Qwik Print on Sweden St., and Key Bank on High St.
Contact Feeley at 227-1636 or Sandy Carson at 227-588 for additional information.
