Warm Clothing Drive Collects More than 300 Donations for the Unsheltered

Kalamazoo Valley Community College's Honors Program recently collected more than 300 clothing donations for United for the Unsheltered of Kalamazoo. Donation bins were located across the college's campuses from Oct. 21 - Nov. 8. The drive collected more than 300 items, including 43 jackets/coats, 67 tops/sweaters, 40 pairs of pants, 32 hats, 72 pairs of socks, 21 pairs of gloves, seven pairs of shoes, two snow pants, 13 scarves and three blankets.

"I cannot tell you how excited I was to hear that the Honors Program students wanted to do another clothing drive this year," said Megan Giambrone, president of United for the Unsheltered. "We have several students who participate with our organization in other ways, so we are familiar with some of them."

United for the Unsheltered provides Kalamazoo County's unsheltered population with meals, hygiene products, survival items and necessities. The organization strives to bring awareness to the unsheltered of Kalamazoo and hopes to inspire collective change within the community.

"On behalf of United for the Unsheltered, I wanted to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the Honors Program Director, Kevin Dockerty, and the honors leadership team for helping organize this event," said Heather Weinert, media content manager for United for the Unsheltered.

Weinert, a Kalamazoo Valley alumna, was the previous Honors Program student president and helped to organize the first clothing drive for United for the Unsheltered earlier this year. Weinert has since continued her work with United for the Unsheltered to manage the organization's media content.

"I'd also like to extend our most sincere thanks to the community for helping provide warmth and comfort to those in need during these cold months. These donations reflect kindness and commitment to making a positive difference in the lives of others" Weinert added.

Giambrone also expressed gratitude and appreciation for everyone who helped to make the donations possible. "Thanks to all of you, we will be able to provide much needed warm gear to folks who are literally carrying everything they own on their backs," she said.

Click here to learn more about United for the Unsheltered. For more information about Kalamazoo Valley's Honors Program, email Program Director Kevin Dockerty at .