Christmas is a wonderful time of year — but less so when it’s 20 degrees outside and you don’t have a coat.
Mark Bunyon, pastor at New Life Christian Fellowship in Tooele, said members of his congregation have noticed that a growing number of locals seem to be going without coats this season.
He too has noticed a growing need in the community — last month the fellowship’s food pantry and coat closet assisted 650 people — so Bunyon and his congregation decided to host a week-long coat drive to meet the need.
“The need for these things, for clothing and everything else, is just growing so fast,” he said.
Bunyon said there are plenty of solid resources in the community for those struggling with food insecurity — New Life itself is currently taking applications from individuals who cannot afford a Christmas dinner this year. A similar project had the congregation distributing 96 Thanksgiving meals last year.
But for those in need of free clothing, especially winter clothing, assistance can be harder to come by, and “having to go through the winter being cold, when everyone has a spare coat in their closet, just doesn’t seem right,” Bunyon said.
The New Life Christian Fellowship hopes to collect 1,000 new or gently used coats over the coming week to expand the church’s coat closet. The coat drive will kick off with a collection event this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The church will continue to accept donations throughout the week.
After a crew of volunteers sorts and inspects the coats, the church will reopen next Saturday, Dec. 20 to distribute the coats to all who may need them on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Those who come to pick up a coat next week may only take coats for those present at the distribution event, Bunyon said, but the church will not require proof of need, and there is no need to be a member of the fellowship — or of any church — to participate.
“If we have a coat that will fit them, they will go home with a new coat,” he said.
The New Life Christian Fellowship is located at 411 E. Utah Ave.