Operation Warm provides coats for children
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 4 years, 3 months AGO
Students from Groff Elementary School show off their new coats, courtesy of the Operation Warm project sponsored by the Moses Lake Firefighters IAFF Local 1258.
Jason Koziol/Courtesy photo
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | December 9, 2021 1:00 AM
MOSES LAKE — About 100 kids at Garden Heights, Midway, Lakeview and Groff elementary schools received a coat for the winter, with the help of the Operation Warm project sponsored by the Moses Lake Firefighters IAFF Local 1258.
Moses Lake Fire Department firefighter/EMT Jason Koziol, project coordinator, said the firefighters have been buying and donating new coats for kids for six years. Each year, they give out about 100 coats, he said.
“Our goal is to get new coats to kids in need,” he said.
The firefighters can purchase the coats at a discounted price, he said, which allows them to get coats for more kids.
The firefighters raise money through charitable projects, and get help from sponsors. Sponsors this year included Omni Staffing Services, Basin Pacific Insurance & Benefits and the Moses Lake Education Association. Other organizations and individuals also gave donations, he said.
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