Coats for Kids – 2020
As the holiday shopping season officially begins on November 27th, instead of joining in the usual events of Black Friday which are admittedly altered due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the DC State Council of the Knights of Columbus will be giving out free and much-needed gifts to DC-area children in need. On the day after Thanksgiving, new winter coats will be given out at the Saint John Paul II National Shrine in Northeast DC to any child who needs one as apart of the Knights of Columbus’ annual Coats for Kids program.
Approximately 18 percent of American children and 14 percent of Canadian children live in poverty. According to the US Census Bureau, many low-income families have scarce resources to cover even the most basic essentials. The Knights of Columbus launched the Coats for Kids program to ensure that every child in North America would have access to a warm winter coat. Since the program started in the District of Columbia in 2009, councils have purchased and distributed more than 500,000 new winter coats to children throughout North America.
This is not the only opportunity to receive a coat for free from the Knights of Columbus. In addition to the event on November 27th, coats will be distributed on December 5th at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church.
This year, our distributions will be outside and focused on a drive-thru system. Cars will pull up, and, without exiting their vehicle, communicate what size they or their child need. Our volunteers will try to match that size with a preferred color, and then give the coat to the person in the vehicle.
If you cannot drive-thru, no worries! Please feel free to walk up and follow our volunteer’s directions on how best to make sure you get the size and color you need.
If your child or a child you know is in need of a coat this season, please come by and get one:
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 27, 2020 (BLACK FRIDAY)
12:00pm – 2:00pm
3900 Harewood Road NE
Saint John Paul II National Shrine – Parking Lot
SATURDAY DECEMBER 5, 2020
9:00am – 12:00pm
1600 Morris Road SE
Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church – Parking Lot
More information about these events is available at dcknights.org/coats. It is open to anyone who needs a coat, particularly children ages 2 – 16 years old, subject to availability.