GREENFIELD — Debbie Daly is used to purchasing the best possible merchandise for Wilson’s Department Store at the best possible prices.
But once a year, the buyer and manager at the landmark downtown store, gets a phone call from the Greenfield Recorder informing her of a budget for something special.
Daly and the department store have participated in the 25-year-old Warm The Children campaign, which the newspaper has also orchestrated with the help of anti-poverty agency Community Action for about 15 years. Daly typically gets a call in the summer, and she learns what she has to work with to buy winter clothes for children ages 1 to 12. This year’s investment was $84,300. The clothing included items like a winter coats, a fleece sweatshirts, socks, pajamas and thermal underwear. Daly said she makes sure to buy high-quality items that can be passed down from one child to the next.
“We have lots of volunteers that knit hats and mittens,” she said. “So the children also get hats and mittens.”
Community Action works with several local service agencies to screen eligible families.
Daly said the clothes are delivered to Wilson’s and stored there before being brought to a temporary Warm the Children “store” that’s established in the Dole Building at the Franklin County Fairgrounds, where distribution this year lasted from Sept. 19 through Sept. 21. She said 1,200 children were accommodated this year and the year prior.
Daly said it takes several days to set up the temporary store and “there’s a job for everybody.” She explained the clothes are moved from Wilson’s after the fairgrounds are cleared up following the Franklin County Fair.
“The community really steps up,” she said. “It’s a lot of work.”
Daly explained children and their families or guardians come to the Dole Building and hand a form – detailing the number of children, their age and gender – to a volunteer shopper. The process is anonymous. The volunteer shopper then takes the children through the store to ensure they get every article they’re entitled to.
“It runs beautifully and smoothly. It has to for lots of reasons. It can’t be disorganized,” she said. “It’s a happy moment for everybody and it’s also nice when the weather cooperates. … It’s a wonderful thing.”
Wilson’s has been in downtown Greenfield since 1882.
To donate, send a check to: Warm the Children, c/o The Recorder, P.O. Box 1367, Greenfield, MA 01302. Also, new clothing may be dropped at The Greenfield Recorder, at 14 Hope St., any time during the year during business hours (Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.).
If you have a story to share about giving or receiving warm clothes during the Warm the Children campaign, contact Domenic Poli at dpoli@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 262.