WESTLOCK — With winter weather soon approaching, donations of warm clothing are needed for the annual Westlock Family and Community Support Services Coats for Kids and Families program.
Residents wishing to donate can drop off gently used winter coats and ski pants at the Westlock Cleaners in the Capri Mall, from Oct. 11-28 and those in need can pick them up at the FCSS office, by appointment, from Oct. 29 to Dec. 17.
“When they’re ready we pick everything up and we have everything sorted here at FCSS on racks and then as people come in to make requests, we do our best to match them up to get them a warm jacket or what they need,” said FCSS program coordinator Carol Kassian. “I don’t think it’s as much about the number of people that we serve, it’s about the people that we serve that have benefited from the program — if it’s one or it’s 50, it doesn’t matter.”
People needing a coat can fill out an application form to complete the screening process and then schedule an appointment to view available coats at the FCSS office. The program has helped close to two dozen families in past years and with the increase in the cost of living, including food and housing Kassian is anticipating the number of requests to increase.
“In the last three to four years we averaged in or around 20-25 families that we helped,” she said. “We’ve got situations where we have new families, immigrant families that have come to this country and face increases in housing costs, in utility costs and food costs … people start making choices about what they can afford and what has to go by the wayside. So, if this is something that can help people make sure they are warm and safe, that’s important.”
This is the third year the program has received financial support from Westlock Servus Credit Union, in the way of a $500 grant that helps with cleaning donated items. The annual program has been ongoing for more than a decade, noted Kassian and has helped many youths and children, families, and seniors.
“That includes all ages and sizes to the best of our ability based on donation — we definitely receive more items than we actually distribute on average. The challenge with our requests is based on the sizes that we have available too,” said Kassian. “We really do encourage people when they’re making their donations of clothing items, that they make sure that the items are clean and in good repair and that the zippers work, there’s no holes. We’re trying to provide people with an opportunity to gain an item when they don’t have anything, but we also want it to be of reasonable quality. We don’t have the budget to deal with repairs.”
