Saturday’s glorious weather didn’t keep thousands of people from remembering the coming bitter chill of a Kansas City winter.
They donated their time, money and tons of coats, blankets and jackets as part of the annual Project Warmth collection drive.
At sites scattered throughout the Kansas City area, volunteers accepted donations and sold raffle tickets for a 2010 Malibu donated by Cable-Dahmer Chevrolet and manufactured in the area. About 77 tons of coats and blankets were donated, and about $2,900 in donations and raffle ticket sales was collected.
Donations ranged from individual items to trash bags bulging with cold- weather clothing to forklift loads of new, sealed-in-the box coats.
Some donors, such as Carol Richardson of Kansas City, gave items with a personal touch. Richardson, who began knitting caps like the one she obtained after losing hair during cancer treatment, donated 75 of those handcrafted caps to Project Warmth.
“It’s just my way of paying it forward,” she said. “Most of what I did was for kids.”
Another woman donated 26 colorful, thick afghans she made during the last year.
Representatives of schools delivered items collected by students, while students from other schools helped staff the donation sites.
Tiesa Smith, a teacher at the Raymore-Peculiar Freshman Center, delivered three large bags of clothing that the school’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes had collected in only one week.
At the Pinnacle Career Institute in Kansas City, the “Fun Squad” led by Heather Cayot held a contest among staff to collect items.
At the Cable-Dahmer location at West 103rd Street and Wornall Road, Dri Duck, an Overland Park outdoor and work apparel maker, delivered a truckload of 500 new coats and jackets to get the drive started. The company, a Project Warmth title sponsor for the first time this year, plans to donate up to 1,500 items.
Project Warmth gives the items collected to The Salvation Army, which coordinates distribution.
“We have found the need to be extremely great in the Kansas City area, especially in the last year,” said Amanda Waters, director of community relations for The Salvation Army in the area.
Waters said the ministry had seen a 30 percent increase in people seeking emergency assistance this year.
All items are sorted and distributed free by The Salvation Army and given to about 100 agencies for the needy in the metropolitan area.
KCTV-5 will broadcast the annual “Project Warmth Special” telethon from 6:30 to 7 p.m. Dec. 11. Operators will accept pledges, and throughout the day, KCTV-5 will air live Project Warmth updates.
The winner of the Chevrolet Malibu donated by Cable-Dahmer Chevrolet will be drawn live at the end of the program.
On Dec. 13, Project Warmth postage-paid envelopes will be distributed in The Kansas City Star. Contributors can use them to send donations.
Cash donations are managed by the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation and distributed by the Mid America Assistance Coalition and The Salvation Army for utility bills, rent and weatherization.
Donations by check can be mailed to:
Project Warmth
C/O Greater Kansas City Community Foundation
1055 Broadway, Suite 130
Kansas City, MO 64105
For more ways to help, go to KansasCity.com and click on the Project Warmth logo.
To reach Tony Rizzo, call 816-234-4435 or send e-mail to trizzo@kcstar.com.
@Nyx.CommentBody@