Employees Donate 380 Coats to Rotary Club of Gilroy
In alignment with our Social Sustainability Program, to commemorate the kickoff of our 150th Anniversary, Germains employees at our Gilroy location hosted our first 150 Coats for Gilroy Coat Drive to support the Rotary Club of Gilroy’s coat donation campaign.
In conjunction with One Warm Coat, the Rotary Club of Gilroy set a goal of collecting 500 clean, gently worn, or new, warm coats during the month of January. According to Dr. Kathleen Rose, Rotary Club of Gilroy’s president, “This coat drive was important to our Rotarians as we recognize that now, more than ever, the need goes beyond the homeless. With COVID wreaking havoc on so many in regard to job security and income, we realized that many would have to choose between warm coats and food or housing expenses. We wanted to ensure that we could help alleviate some of the stress for those decisions.”
Germains employees hosted a weeklong coat drive with an ambitious goal to collect 150 gently used coats to contribute to the Rotary’s goal of 500 coat donations. Delivery of donations early in the week trickled in, but by midweek the donation drive turned into a friendly competition among staff, leading to a flood of donations. Not only did we achieve our goal of 150 coat donations, but we also exceeded it! Our Seed Lab Manager Sandra Amaral wowed us all with her ability to collect 266 coats donations on her own. Sandra’s massive contribution helped us to exceed our goal! In the end, we contributed 380 coats and jackets to the Rotary Club of Gilroy’s coat drive.
Rotary Club of Gilroy Coat Drive
According to the Rotary Club, the coats and jackets were distributed to Community Solutions, PitStop, Gavilan College Food Pantry, Salvation Army, Cecilia’s Closet, and the YWCA Silicon Valley. Also, coats were provided to the Gilroy Police Department. Officers distributed coats to local families they know who are in greatest need. Coats and jackets were also supplied to Christopher Ranch to distribute to their employees and families.
In addition to the donated coats and jackets, $385 was raised. One Warm Coat purchases coats and jackets for $1 each, so in addition to the nearly 900 coats donated, another 385 coats will be made available to those in need. We want to thank all our employees who contributed to the coat drive. Not only was the event a great way to generate employee engagement, but we are proud to know our employee’s contributions went to help people in need in our surrounding Gilroy community.