As the heat of summer starts to fade, some Fairfax County churches are refocusing their charitable efforts on the community’s needs for the coming winter.
With support from the Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Arlington, four churches in the county launched a winter coat drive earlier this month with the goal of collecting 10,000 coats for refugees, people experiencing homelessness and other community members in need.
New and gently used coats can be dropped off at the Holy Spirit Catholic Church’s parish office (5121 Woodland Way) in Annandale until 6 p.m. on Friday (Sept. 27). New hats, gloves, scarves and other wintry garments are also being accepted.
All four participating churches will accept donation drop-offs during Mass this coming weekend (Sept. 28-29):
- Holy Spirit Catholic Church (8800 Braddock Road, Annandale)
- St. Michael Catholic Church (7401 St. Michael’s Lane, Annandale)
- Nativity Catholic Church (6400 Nativity Lane, Burke)
- St. Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church (10500 Zion Drive, Fairfax)
In addition, an Amazon wish list has been set up for the winter coat drive so interested donors can contribute even if they can’t visit one of the drop-off sites.
“Coordinating this coat drive with other area parishes will greatly benefit thousands of our neighbors who would otherwise not be prepared for the winter,” Holy Spirit Catholic Church Rev. John O’Donohue said in a press release. “We are so blessed and fortunate to have generous parishioners and members of the community who want to help us achieve this goal.”
Jessica Estrada, Catholic Charities of Arlington’s director of newcomer services, says the organization wanted to host a coat drive now so recipients can “prepare well in advance of colder weather.”
The donations will be distributed at Holy Spirit Catholic School in Annandale during the fourth week of October with help from nonprofits in the region.
“Many families in our community are struggling with the higher prices of everything these days,” Estrada said in the release. “If we can provide even the smallest bit of relief, it will help make life easier (and warmer) for the days to come.”
