My friend Lin called me a few days ago and asked me a simple question.
“I have a few coats I want to donate. Do you know a good place where they can maybe help someone in need? Maybe a homeless shelter?”
Well, if you’ve ever met Lin, she’s my sister from another mother. So that question turned into this…
“How about if we both start collecting coats from everyone we know, see how many we can get and bring them down to Dallas in early November?” Of course, we couldn’t stop there. The it evolved into, “Let’s set a radical goal of 5,723 coats and blankets! (The 5,700 is the approximate homeless ‘point in time’ count in Dallas and 23 is the day we started this idea) We can get businesses, churches and individuals to help us out. We’ll blast it out on social media and tell everyone we can!”
Thus projectwarm.us was born. Here’s the skinny…
What is projectwarm.us?
Project Warm Us is just a way to get some much needed warmth to the homeless. Our goal is to collect 5,723 coats and blankets to be distributed to the homeless population in Dallas. We will be passing these on to ourcalling.org for distribution on Thanksgiving day. See below for all our distribution partners.
How can I help?
Donate your new or gently used coats and blankets. Any gender, any size, adults, kids, it doesn’t matter. We need them all. The drop-off locations will be posted as we arrange the locations. 
Do I get a tax write-off?
I wish I could say yes, but the answer is no. This is not a non-profit organization, it’s just a couple of chicks with an idea to help the homeless.
How will these be distributed?
We have a few partners to be sure all of the coats and blankets will go to the people with the biggest needs. We chose these organizations because they’re established and we’ve worked with them before with very positive results.
ourcalling.org is a Dallas-based organization that helps the homeless, mostly adult men and women. They will distribute the coats and blankets on Thanksgiving Day during their turkey day lunch & dinner.
“We want to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth on the streets in and around downtown Dallas. We want to help individuals understand their broken condition and to focus on Jesus Christ for answers. We will employ the methods of proven 12-step recovery, mentoring, and Bible studies to acknowledge that the root of our problem is sin, and apart from Christ we can do nothing. As we meet spiritual needs we will also serve as a referral service to local shelters, churches, and other service agencies.”
thesamaritaninn.org will get any of the leftover adult size coats and the majority of the kids coats. They can also take the additional blankets.
“The Samaritan Inn is more than just a place to spend the night. It is a holistic program that teaches self-sufficiency and life skills. To assist the needs of individuals and families before, during, and after a homeless situation, The Samaritan Inn provides interactive, in-house programs for its residents and graduates. Those with special needs are referred to additional programs and resources available within the community to help during their crisis.”
casahogarelim.com is an orphanage in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico that has over 100 kids at any given time. It does get cold enough down there to need coats. There’s no heating or air conditioning in their dorms. All of the extra kids coats and some blankets will go south of the border.
“At the present time Casa Hogar houses over 100 children ranging in age from infant to 24 years old. Through Mama Lupita’s loving example, the children are taught to love the Lord and depend on Him to supply their needs. As a privately run orphanage, Casa Hogar Elim receives no funding from the government. It is funded solely through private donations. If you are interested in supporting Mama Lupita in the work of Casa Hogar, we ask that you allow God to speak to your heart concerning how you can give. Above all, we ask you to keep us in your prayers. We are assured that God will supply all our needs according to his riches in glory.”
The drop points are being arranged and we will start listing them tomorrow.