Collecting new hats, mitts Saturday at Santa Claus Parade
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For the past several years, the Tillsonburg Kinette Club has been helping needy children and teens keep warm each winter, by donating brand new hats and mitts to the Salvation Army.
The donated items have been given out as part of the Salvation Army’s Coats for Kids campaign and Christmas hampers, and for the second straight year, the Tillsonburg Kinette Club will be collecting new hats and mittens during the Santa Claus parade this Saturday, November 17, 2012.
“It’s been at least ten years that we’ve been doing this. We usually buy $200 worth of new hats and mitts every year,” said Kinette Club president Tammy Kyle. “Last year we decided because we were going in the Santa Claus parade, that we would encourage people to bring hats and mitts out to the parade to try to increase the number of donations that we could make.”
The Kinette Club held their first hats and mitts collection during last year’s Santa Claus parade and hope to see an increase this year.
“We were only able to collect 17 items in last year’s parade, but it was our first year doing it so we anticipate that this year we would have more donations, as more people become aware of it,” explained Kyle.
Last winter there was a total of 141 items given to the Salvation Army – several of those were donated by club members, 17 were collected during the parade and the remaining were bought at local stores.
In recent years, there has been growing community support for the hats and mitts collection each winter.
“For the past three years, Ladies a Champ in the Tillsonburg Town Centre has sold us their old stock at a very discounted price,” said Kyle. “It’s very good quality hats and mitts and we’re able to buy more that way.
“They know every year that I’m going to come in there and they always set the them aside for me right at the beginning of the season.”
Despite the many donations each year, there is a continuing need for warm winter accessories, especially for children and teens.
“The numbers are only going up – of people that need hats and mitts (in winter), so we thought this would be a good opportunity for us to be able to give a larger donation to the Salvation Army,” added Kyle. “We probably need a little bit more for teenagers – in that range and size.”
All hats and mitts donated must be brand new items and never worn, or people may also donate hand knitted hats and mitts as well.
Kyle said it doesn’t take a lot of money to help a needy child this winter and make a donation to the Tillsonburg Kinette Club in the Santa Claus parade this Saturday.
“It can be a pair of gloves or a hat from a dollar store - it doesn’t have to be elaborate but it could definitely help out,” said Kyle.
“It would be great for people to know that every year, their kids can get a decent set of hats and mitts.”