Four Reasons YOU Should Donate a Coat to the 12th Annual Charlotte Coat Drive
August 22, 2022
On Sept. 1 Charlotte Mechanical begins its tenth annual Charlotte Coat Drive, a 2.5-month campaign to collect coats. Through Nov. 13, Charlotteans may drop off coats at one of 50+donation barrels spread across the city or gift a monetary donation online. The campaign concludes with one last chance to donate at Zip-Up Day on Nov. 13 at Dilworth Neighborhood Grille. The goal is to gather 6,000 coats for The Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte, which are distributed through its various adult and youth programs.
“The Covid-19 pandemic has had widespread impacts on our community, and lower-income families are feeling its effects the most. The need in Charlotte is always great, but this year we expect it to be even greater,” said Major Todd Mason, area commander for The Salvation Army of Greater Charlotte. “No man, woman or child in our community should have to bear a winter without a coat. We are grateful for partners like Charlotte Mechanical who are committed to keeping people safe and warm.”
Donating is easy; there are four options. Locations, links, and information are available at http://bit.ly/CharlotteCoatDriveNews.
(1) Barrel Locations: Drop off at a nearby business participating in the drive from Sept. 1 – Nov. 13.
(2) Online Donations: Donate monetarily online.
(3) Zip-Up Day: It is how Charlotte Mechanical zips up the drive. On Nov.13 from 7 a.m. – 4 p.m., the public is invited to bring their coat donations to the parking lot of Dilworth Neighborhood Grille. They will be greeted with free food, music, mascots, giveaways and some zippy surprises. Visitors may drive through and go or join us for a bit. A contact-less drive-through will be available as well. Check the website closer to the date for any logistics updates due to the pandemic.
(4) Appointments: Charlotte Mechanical customers may give to their technician during an appointment.
“Each year we are so moved by the extraordinary need for coats in the community and we were even more inspired when we heard from our friends at the Salvation Army that, sadly, the need would be even greater this year,” said Steve and Nancy McLaughlin, owners of Charlotte Mechanical. “We know that this is a tough year for everyone, but it’s important to keep in mind that even one coat can make a huge difference. And no matter your comfort level, we have you covered – in addition to the barrels spread across the city, we are accepting monetary donations online and will offer a contact-less drive-through during our Zip-Up day.”
What started 10 years ago as a small donation of coats from the owners and their friends, has now become the company’s largest community event. The Charlotte Coat Drive collected 5,100+ coats in 2019. Charlotte Mechanical funds everything 100% with zero cost to The Salvation Army or any barrel partner.
And a big thank you to our media partners: WBT, the Link and Southpark magazine.
