Warm coats for one, warm coats for all
Staff.
October 31, 2016
UK Athletics has teamed up with the “One Warm Coat” foundation and the Lexington Rescue Mission in hopes to make a difference in the Lexington community for people in need.
Lindsey Oettle, a graduate assistant for UK Athletics event management explained that Coats for a Cause is made up of five athletic department graduate assistants who are enrolled in a Sports Leadership class together.
“We ultimately needed to complete a service project for the semester and decided that teaming up with athletic department would allow us to reach students, faculty, fans, and the Lexington community,” Oetlle said.
What truly geared UK’s athletic department to team up with Coats for a Cause was their dedication to UK graduate assistants and their surrounding community.
Related: UK mascots trek to Sin City
The Coats for a Cause community is encouraging all people to donate any gently used coats. Simply drop off a coat one of many collection bins on campus and at select upcoming sporting events.
Matches where you can donate include men’s soccer’s bout with Marshall on Oct. 30 and UK women’s hoop’s matchup with Union College on Nov. 3. The full list of participating events and drop-off points can be found on UKnow.
“So far we have received about 20 coats in the one week of operation that we’ve been running,” said Cameron Langfels, one of the students who organized the project.
According to Langfels, this is the first year “One Warm Coat” has participated on UK’s campus, adding that the organization was founded in 1992 and has supported over 3,000 coat drives each year with more than 20,000 drives since it’s inception. “One Warm Coat” has expanded to 10 countries, collecting over four million coats.
Coats for a Cause is also accepting money donations, which can be dropped off outside Rupp Arena during the upcoming men’s basketball games versus Duquense on Nov. 20 and UCLA on Nov. 3.
“Coats for a Cause has set a practical and obtainable goal of 200 coats and monetary donations of $200 by Dec. 3,” Oettle said. “However, we are hopeful to surpass these goals with the support of the UK Athletic Department.”
UK Athletics are eager to make a difference in the Lexington Community and hopes you will join them in support for these cold months ahead for people in need.
