New York Cares Winter Coat Drive 2020 is Underway

POSTED BY
Evelyn Kanter

Reminder that if holiday shopping earns you or the kids a new, warm winter coat or jacket, donate your old one to the poor and homeless in NYC.

2020 is the 32nd annual New York Cares Winter Coat Drive, which has delivered more than two million warm winter coats to NYC needy over the years. This year more than ever, New Yorkers are counting on acts of warmth make it through the holiday season and the rest of winter.

Not since the Great Depression have so many people – in NYC and elsewhere – experienced hunger, unemployment, illness, and homelessness.

Basic needs like food and warm clothing compete with one another as families and individuals face cruel choices.

New York Cares believes:

No one should have to skip a meal to buy a winter coat.
No parent should be forced to choose between buying school supplies and staying warm.
No essential worker should commute without a warm coat on their back.

As always, there are dozens of drop-off locations where you can donate a warm winter coat or jacket you no longer want, or one the kids have outgrown, to poor and needy New Yorkers.

This year, New York Cares is partnering with community organizations in Central Queens, East Brooklyn, and the South Bronx to provide new, high-quality coats to residents of areas most impacted by COVID-19 and the resulting economic instability.

The annual winter coat collection is as much a part of the holidays in NYC as the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree and the fancy department store holiday windows, and you can donate through the end of the year to meet demand.

Click here for an interactive map of donation locations

Due to COVID-19, community partners will receive coats directly this year. I

That is unlike past years when you could drop off a coat at any NYPD station, Penn Station and Grand Central Terminal.

Before donating, please review these safety guidelines provided by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC):

Wash coats in soap and water.
Dry clean at the highest temperature possible without damaging the coat.
Store coats in a dark plastic bag or box to reduce contact.

If you don’t have a coat to donate physically, you can do it virtually, by making a donation on the New York Cares website to purchase one or more coats for a needy New Yorker, adult or child. Just $20 buys a brand new winter coat for a New Yorker in need. Or donate any amount.

Donating a winter coat or jacket will warm your heart along with the body of the recipient.

Because New York cares about the poor and homeless.

This article about the New York Cares Winter Coat Drive has been published annually since 2014, and has been updated for 2020

Evelyn Kanter is a native New Yorker who has written for the NY Times, NY Daily News, NY Post, New York Magazine, and is a former on-air reporter for WCBS Newsradio 88 and WABC-TV Eyewitness News.