WEST OCEAN CITY — Winter and the holiday season will be a little warmer for dozens of children in need in the community after the Career Firefighter-Paramedics Association of Ocean City, of Local IAFF 4269, last week distributed more than 50 new winter coats to students at Ocean City Elementary School.
For four years now, the IAFF 4269 has partnered with Operation Warm, a national non-profit initiative dedicated to warming the hearts, minds and bodies of children in need in the community.
Through the generous donations from the community, the IAFF 4269 purchased the new coats for area students through the Operation Warm program. Each donation of $34 provided a child in need with a brand-new American-made winter coat. The coats are custom-fitted with a tag inside saying “Made Just for You,” along with the child’s name.
The Operation Warm initiative differs from traditional winter coat drives during which coats are donated in that each student gets a coat made just for them and not a hand-me-down. In that way, each child in need in the program gets a coat similar to his classmates.
Not to be confused with a collection drive, the Ocean City firefighters’ program is centered around brand-new winter coats and the IAFF 4269 worked with school administrators to determine which children could use a new winter coat. With the help of OCES teacher Kristin Van Kirk and guidance counselor Linda McGean, OCES students from pre-kindergarten to fourth-grade were sized by firefighters in the school cafeteria and then the firefighters helped write the child’s name on a special tag inside the coat.
IAFF President Ryan Whittington said this week the goal of the firefighters and paramedics participating in Operation Warm is to provide new winter coats to children in need, helping to improve self-confidence, peer acceptance, school attendance and overall wellness. Whittington said it was a labor of love for the local firefighters, who find ways to give back to the community when they are not fighting fires or responding to emergencies.
“As firefighters, when we are not responding to 911 emergencies, we are working to give back to the community we serve and protect,” he said. “As firefighters, we carry around memories we wish we could erase, yet we understand that our occupation and experience puts us in a unique position to raise awareness and support for our community members in need.”
Since 1998, Operation Warm has inspired hope and empowered communities by manufacturing and distributing high-quality, new winter coats to over two million children in need.
