The Broken Bow Elks Coat Drive is a little over half-way through its donation season, and to co-organizer Paul Loy, it appears their goal of 375 coats for the year will be met.
“Right now we have collected 145 coats,” said Loy. “I know it’s early yet, but it looks like we’re going to make that pretty easy. Every year I raise the estimate of what we’re going to get and every year we get most of them.”
Becky Loy added that assistance to the project is also on the way in the form of a grant from the Elks at the national level.
“We received a grant actually through the National Elks that’s going to let us purchase more coats. A lot of the coats that we get are typically adults or larger people sizes – these ones will be all kids sizes instead,” stated Becky Loy.
Over 200 coats in toddler and youth sizes were recently received by the Coat Drive and are now available at Community Connection.
Coats, hats, scarves and other warm clothing can continue to be donated at the Custer County Chief, at 305 South 10th Avenue, Broken Bow.
For those in need of cold-weather wear, the donated items can be picked up at the Community Connection, 837 S D St, on the North side of the Broken Bow Square.
“We’re so thankful to the Chief and to the Community Connection,” noted Becky Loy. “They’ve been very gracious to work with us all these years. And they’ve just, you know, it’s been a good, a good project for our local Elks Lodge. They [Community Connection] have helped us by having a separate area where those items are available and it’s upstairs. But the nice thing about it is it’s discreet. People can take their time search. It’s not overcrowded. And the other thing is, is that all those items are free, there is not any charge that goes with that.”
While the donation period for winter-weather clothing will end in early January, items will still be available at the Community Connection as we enter the coldest part of the year.
Becky Loy reminded, “If people have gone and they haven’t found anything that was right for them, don’t give up because we still have more items coming.”
