Community helps keep kids warm

Thank you to our amazing community!

More than 1,500 brand-new new winter coats were delivered Thursday to students at 16 City School District of Albany schools, the result of the City of Albany’s 2023 Cash for Coats drive.

Also Thursday, Mayor Kathy Sheehan held a news conference at Eagle Point Elementary School announcing the drive’s success. Eagle Point was one of the schools that received coats.

The city will distribute another 3,000-plus hats and pairs of gloves to schools in the coming weeks.

Also at Thursday's news conference were Superintendent Joseph Hochreiter, and drive sponsors including B. Lodge and Co. owners Jack and Mark Yonnally, United Way of the Capital Region CEO Peter Gannon, Palace Theatre Marketing Director Sean Allen, and Tom Burke of Burke Companies, a generous and longtime donor to the campaign. An additional sponsor, Dr. Edward Wladis, was unable to make the news conference.

Now in its 15th year, the drive raises money during October and November that goes toward the purchase new coats and winter gear for students in need. The goal is to provide enough coats for students at four elementary schools, but the drive was so successful this year that the city was able to purchase coats for all district schools that indicated a need. 

The campaign is organized and overseen by the mayor's office each year. Lodge's offers a significant discount on any items purchased for Cash for Coats, maximizing the impact of each cash donation. In addition, schools estimate their families' needs and provide the city with sizes and quantities of coats.