Portage coat drive aims to keep community warm

Liz Laubscher

A clothing drive sponsored by Society for Human Resource Management is taking place now until Nov. 28.

Drop-off boxes are located outside Room 107 in the Business Administration Building and Room 222 in Rockwell Hall. A final collection event will be held from 2:30 to 4 p.m. Nov. 29 in the Student Center.

Nadine Miyares, senior business administration major and

co-vice president for the student organization, said all donations will be delivered to the Portage County Clothing Center on Nov. 30.

“It’s getting cold, and there are a lot of people that can’t afford clothes,” she said. “This is a way for the university and our organization to give back and be good partners to the community.”

The center is a branch from Family and Community Services, said the center’s director, Candy Pollard. She described the organization as a parent company to the clothing center.

“We take in donated items and we sort them, hang them and display them in our store,” Pollard said. “People come in and shop and get whatever they want.”

The clothing center allows individuals to donate 16 items per visit, and those items should be separated into pairs, such as two jeans, two sweaters or two jackets.

Miyares said to further help the center, the student organization accepts more than just coats — it also accepts items such as hats, gloves and scarves. She said the organization accepts decent condition items of any size for women, men, girls and boys.

Miyares said she hopes students who leave over Thanksgiving break consider bringing items from family members when they return to campus.

Pollard said the clothing center also accepts furniture and items for around the house.

She said most of the center’s funding comes from the United Way of Portage County.

Also, to help keep costs down, Pollard is the only paid employee at the center. Local organizations, including churches, students or people doing community service, make up the majority of volunteers.

For more information about the coat drive, contact Miyares at [email protected]. For more information about the clothing center, contact Pollard at (330) 296-0503.

Contact social services reporter Liz Laubscher at [email protected].