Coat drive fills a community need
Published 9:51 am Friday, November 2, 2012
Submitted photo READY TO HELP: Grace Christian Academy (GCA) served as a partner and drop off location for coats and blankets for the Fourth Annual Southwest Georgia Farm Credit Community Coat Drive. Shown above are students in Mrs. Rachel Harrell’s fourth-grade class with some of the approximately 450 items collected at GCA. In addition, the GCA Student Government Association assisted with sorting and bagging the collected items. Thanks to all who donated items to this community outreach project and a special thanks to our partners: Grace Christian Academy, Five Points Dry Cleaners, Bainbridge College, and Bainbridge-Decatur YMCA.
The warm-hearted generosity of the community will help warm the bodies and souls of many students and others in need in the upcoming cold winter days, thanks to the fourth-annual coat and blanket drive.
The Southwest Georgia Farm Credit Coat and Blanket drive works because of the cooperation of such organizations as Family Connection, the YMCA, the local schools, including Bainbridge College and Grace Christian Academy, and the generous contribution of Rick Ragans and Five Points Dry Cleaners, who donate their cleaning services to make the items ready for new owners.
Once cleaned, they are picked up by Allison Harrell, social worker with the Decatur County Schools, and stored, ready to be given to those in need.
Southwest Georgia Farm Credit, Family Connection coordinator Ronnie Burke and Harrell, all expressed appreciation for the donations, but gave special praise to the work of the students at Grace Christian Academy, who donated more than 500 items, with 150 of them coming from just one class.