Koats 4 Kids - Waterloo

Thank you for your generous donations! These kids look great in their new winter apparel. Receiving it just in time for the cold weather ahead.

One little girl wearing a pretty pink coat told our volunteer Mary Jo that "this is really awesome! I'm going to sleep in it tonight!" We hear nice things like that from many of our community kids. You can't help but smile. It makes this project so worthwhile and all because of CARING PEOPLE like you. THANK you so much!

Helping Just One Child At A Time

I have to walk every day so this coat will keep me warm.

My other coat is so tight on me. Thank you for getting me one that fits!

I have never had something so pretty.

Do I get to keep it?

I have a lot of brothers and sisters and this coat is the first new thing I have.

If you have never gone without or you have gone without and know how it feels, PLEASE consider helping us provide warm winter gear to a community child that needs a little help.

It is a great feeling helping those in need ESPECIALLY a child.

Thank you so much for blessing my grandson with a new coat and being a blessing to me as well.

Please consider a donation to our Koats 4 Kids project. Donations can be made online at www.WlooCommunityFoundation.org or make a check out to K4K and mail it to the Waterloo Community Foundation, P.O. Box 1253, Waterloo, 50704.

Our community is full of caring people that want to help our disadvantaged kids. THANK you so much!

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Who wants to think about winter when it is 81 degrees outside? We do!

Koats 4 Kids' fundraising efforts have started! We provide winter gear to low-income kids going to schools in Black Hawk County.

With your donation you can "change the world" of a child by providing them with a new warm coat, boots, snow pants and a hat, gloves and scarf. They will be warm while walking to school in really cold weather or while waiting for their school bus.

We wish we could tell you there were no kids in our community that needed help with winter gear this year but unfortunately, we still have 9200+ school age children living in poverty in Black Hawk County. Can we count on you to help one child get the warm clothing they need? Helping one child at a time is a great start to meeting our goals and giving kids what they need.

A gift of $35, $55 or $75 will buy the much needed new winter gear to keep our kids warm and dry.

$35 a child will get to choose a new warm coat in their favorite color, a hat, gloves and a scarf. For some kids this may be the first new coat they have ever owned, or it replaces a coat that is too small and in poor condition.

$55 a child will get a new warm coat, hat, gloves, scarf and a new pair of boots to keep their feet warm and dry.

$75 a child will get everything needed so they can play in the snow: coat, boots, snow pants, hat, gloves, scarf.

Koats 4 Kids shares winter gear with kids in the Cedar Falls, Hudson and Waterloo School Districts. In addition to these school districts, items are also given to low-income kids attending River Hills, Royal Legacy Christian School, Saint Edward, Blessed Maria Assunta Pallotta, Columbus, Blessed Sacrament, Head Start, Saint Patrick, Valley Lutheran, Waterloo Christian, Bosco Catholic Schools.

School Staff Comments about the impact the Koats 4 Kids project has on their students and families.

The Koats 4 Kids program is, in my mind, an essential service that I am so thankful to participate in each year. Each winter season I see kids coming to school without warm clothing, and their caretakers often do not have the financial means to provide them with coats, boots, or snow pants that fit them. It is such a relief on the parents and guardians of these kids, and I have heard countless times how grateful these families are that this is one less thing they need to stress about in an already stressful time of year. It is difficult to describe the joy and astonishment on kids' faces when they realize that not only do they get to wear the gear at school but also they get to take it home and keep it. The Koats 4 Kids program also helps kids socially/emotionally, as they are able to fully participate in recess during the winter instead of staying on the blacktop, which is incredibly isolating for students. Thank you to everyone who contributes and supports this critical program to ensure that kids are staying warm and included each winter. David Gjersvik, School Counselor, Hansen Elementary

I am writing to support the Cedar Valley Koats 4 Kids program in the hopes that our community will support their requests for funding. This program has given coats, warmth, and hope to countless kids in the Cedar Valley over the years and we have come to rely on them to keep our students warm and coming to school. As students get older the required distance they live from their school in order to receive bussing increases. For many high school students this means they must walk to school year round and if they do not have proper outerwear this can be a true barrier to attendance. Likewise, many students must wait outside in the early hours of the day as their buses pick them up, again, an impossible task in Iowa without the proper outerwear. Koats for Kids solves these issues and allows students to stay warm and thereby stay engaged in school. Without the support from Koats for Kids, I am certain that many students throughout the Cedar Valley would not attend school with the regularity that a warm coat allows. Andy Miehe, Principal, West High.

Please consider a donation to help keep our community kids warm. You can write a check to Koats 4 Kids and mail it to the Waterloo Community Foundation, P.O. Box 1253, Waterloo, IA 50704. You can also make your donation on-line at www.WlooCommunityFoundation.org

This "gift of warmth" will make your heart smile! I promise.