Winter coat drive slated for August and October

For decades, members of Weiser’s church communities have been holding annual coat drives to help keep the area’s less fortunate warm during the fall and winter months.
 Usually the drive, which happens through Love, INC (In the Name of Christ) of Washington County, occurs in October.
 This year, Dorothy Evans, who has taken over the project from long time organizer Niki Davies, is holding two separate drives.
 The first is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 28 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on the lawn at St. Agnes Catholic Church. Volunteers will be giving away hoodies and light coats in preparation for fall weather.
 The second will also be held at St. Agnes, but will be a winter coat giveaway scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 30.
 Love, INC is an independent, 501 (c) (3) non-profit governed by a board of directors and consists of a partnership of 18 local Christian churches that aim to serve the community and its needs.
 The organization serves Washington County, including Council, and Annex, Ore.
 Visit www.loveincwashingtoncounty.org for more details.
 “We collect coats all year long,” Evans said. “We have a storage locker that is paid for by one of the other churches. At the moment, we seem to have lots of winter coats, but we are short hoodies and lightweight coats, especially from 0- to 4-year-olds, and also with coats for the same age group. I think it’s very important that we make sure everyone is warm this winter.”
 All coats and hoodies are clean, Evans taking special care to wash them before giving them away.
 She said that many of the coats donated are from area schools.
 “Amazingly, we get a lot of our hoodies and coats from the lost and founds,” Evans explained. “Once the school year is over, they call us and we get bags and bags.”
 Evans added that anyone needing coats can still get them through the year.
 For more information, call Dorothy Evans at (208) 549-5589.