MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake Firefighters International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1258 got together to make sure some local students were warm as fall turns into winter in the Columbia Basin. 

“IAFF Local 1258 benevolent fund and Operation Warm had another successful year of giving a warm coat to our local kids in need and after 10 years and almost 1,500 coats given to the children of Moses Lake it still makes us happy and grateful to keep our local children warm and safe,” Moses Lake Fire Department Lieutenant Jason Koziol said in a message to the Columbia Basin Herald. 

The coats were distributed Friday at Park Orchard, North, Larson Heights, Longview and Knolls Vista elementary schools, he said. 

Firefighters still have a limited supply of coats available to help those in need. Anyone knowing a child who could use a new jacket can reach out to MLFD and IAFF 1258 with size and gender information for the child and firefighters will connect the youngster with a coat if they have one available. 

Coats were paid for via the IAFF Local 1258 Benevolent Fund in cooperation with Operation Warm, Koziol said.

Operation Warm is a national nonprofit that works to ensure children have a coat during the cold winter months. Additionally, they work to provide shoes and other support children need to socialize and succeed on multiple levels. The organization started more than two decades ago.

More information on Operation Warm can be found at operationwarm.org and more information on IAFF Local 1258, including current activities and events, may be found at facebook.com/moseslakefirefighters.

    Students at North Elementary expressed appreciation for firefighters’ efforts to ensure all of their classmates had warm coats.