WF teachers partner with Helpsy to distribute winter coats

On Saturday, Dec. 16, the William Floyd United Teachers (WFUT) hosted a 1,000-coat giveaway in collaboration with Helpsy, a clothing recycling organization, to help provide a little extra warmth to the community this winter. The event, which was held at William Paca Middle School, showcased the spirit of the William Floyd community. In total, 1,000 coats were donated to community residents, 200 coats were donated to Colonial Youth & Family Services, and 100 coats went to Billy Floyd’s Closet, an in-school coat location available for William Floyd students who may need them.

Contributing to the spirit of the season, residents were welcomed to the event with a beautiful WFUT Cares sign built by William Floyd High School Career and Technical Education (CTE) carpentry students, and enjoyed holiday music performed by the William Floyd High School string quartet, trumpet trio and choir. Attendees also received candy canes with special holiday messages from elementary school students, put together by high school volunteers, and had the opportunity to take photos with mascot, Billy Floyd. Special thanks to class council students and CTE barbering students who volunteered throughout the event, and to high school teacher, Dave Bruccoleri, who donated 300 unopened toys for kids to receive at the event!

“This event truly showcased the heart of the William Floyd school community,” said Kevin M. Coster, superintendent of schools, William Floyd School District. “On behalf of the William Floyd School District, I would like to thank the William Floyd United Teachers, Helpsy, and all those who pitched in to make a difference in the lives of so many from our community.”

This event, made possible due to the generous donations by Helpsy, was spearheaded by William Floyd teachers Mike Lacarrubba, who also serves as the WFUT safe schools chairperson, and Kari Garfen, who is the WFUT local action committee chairperson.

“Our local action committee highlights the very best we have to offer here at WFUT,” said Michael Devenney, William Floyd High School teacher and WFUT president. “It is this outreach that allows us to repay the community for the support we receive from our Colonial families. All in all, it is our hope that we brought a few smiles to local families that mean the world to us.” 

Helpsy, a Public Benefit Corporation and Certified B Corp, is dedicated to keeping clothes out of the trash by extending the useful life of clothing and finding the next best use for garments while creating honorable work for all its employees. Helpsy collects 100,000 pounds of clothes per day in cooperation with 1,500 communities, businesses and nonprofits.  “We are dedicated to changing the way people think about clothing recycling while adhering to the highest level of social and environmental performance,” said Dan Green, co-founder and CEO, Helpsy. “Helpsy’s mission is to keep clothes out of the trash, and we work hard to leverage this mission to support the communities we serve.”

Helpsy is using its infrastructure to sort, condition check and deliver coats to community organizations in need of warm winter coats. “Through our Project Warmth we are able to find meaningful and local use for thousands of coats we collect and give back to communities in which we work,” said Helpsy chief of staff, Lisa Sciannella.  “Because we have ‘boots on the ground’, Helpsy is able to assist communities at the grassroots level and we are happy to put our hustle where our heart is.”

Project Warmth is Helpsy’s community initiative. The company is working to donate thousands of warm winter coats to individuals in need across the northeast this winter. Donated coats have been quality checked, are clean and in good working condition. By donating coats to local nonprofits in communities, like William Floyd, Helpsy’s Project Warmth will provide a warm winter coat to many people in need.

Helpsy works to reuse, resell, and repurpose the clothing it collects. In the last year alone Helpsy collected over 31 million pounds of clothing. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, textile waste is the fastest-growing type of trash in the country. It takes up nearly 6 percent of all landfill space and 85 percent of clothes end up in the trash.  Helpsy is committed to working with organizations big and small to extend the useful life of clothing and partners with organizations to divert textiles while fundraising for their missions. To host a clothing drive, place a bin, or explore other ways Helpsy can partner with your organization please reach out to info@helpsy.co.

ABOUT HELPSY: Helpsy is a Certified B Corp extending the life of clothing. Helpsy operates 1,200 clothing collection points and provides free curbside service to millions of Americans. It funds hundreds of charities and thrift stores and gives consumers convenient and compelling alternatives to the landfill. Currently it collects an item of clothing every second. Founded in 2017 by Dan Green, Alex Husted, and Dave Milliner, Helpsy has diverted more than 150,000,000 pounds of used clothing, saving municipalities millions in waste disposal and providing millions in funding to hundreds of nonprofit, municipal, and commercial partners. Helpsy’s collection services are available in 10 Northeast states, and it diverts bulk quantities of unwanted clothing from sources across the USA and the world. For more information, please visit www.helpsy.co.