For thousands of kids across Western Washington, having a warm coat to ward off the December chill isn’t a given.
Roughly 10 percent of students in the Tukwila School District are housing insecure and qualify for the McKinney-Vento Education of Homeless Children and Youth Assistance Act. For their families, paying for food, shelter and medicine may mean there’s little left over for winter clothing.
Through Dec. 31, Inspirus Credit Union is hosting a Coats for Kids Drive to collect new or clean, gently used coats. Donations can be made at Inspirus branches, 5200 Southcenter Blvd. in Tukwila.
To kick off the drive, on Dec. 6 Inspirus donated $1,000 worth of coats and supplies, plus $1,000 cash to support students in need in the Tukwila, Highline, Kent, Renton and Tacoma school districts, as well as North Thurston Public Schools.
“Over 2,100 individual students will be appropriately dressed this winter, which reduces illness in our schools,” Tukwila School District Interim Superintendent Judith Berry said in a media release. “Thank you Inspirus Credit Union for supporting the health and wellness of our students.”
More than 300 coats were given away at the event, as well as sweatpants, sweatshirts, socks and underwear. Inspirus also donated hygiene kits to students in Tukwila School District
“There is an overwhelming amount of need in our community,” Inspirus President and CEO Scott Adkins said in the release. “As a credit union passionate about education, we want students to succeed inside and outside the classroom. We realize that sometimes the best way to help is to simply remove barriers that block students from reaching their potential.”
To learn more about supporting local students in need, visit Inspirus’s Community Wall inside any branch, or visit InspirusCU.org.
Tukwila School District Interim Superintendent Judith Berry, right, and executive assistant Deborah Kohr pick up donations for students at Inspirus Credit Union’s Coats for Kids Drive kick off. Courtesy Inspirus Credit Union
