Archive: Around Town

The Ithaca Rotary Club wrapped up its 23rd annual Share the Warmth campaign in mid-December. Donations of new or gently used winter clothing were gratefully collected, sorted, and distributed across the area by volunteers from a number of sponsoring partner organizations: Ithaca Rotary Club, Trumansburg Rotary Club, Cornell University, Ithaca College, Tompkins Cortland Community College, Ithaca Re-Use, and the Samaritan Center of Catholic Charities.

Ithaca Rotary is pleased to announce that 592 Tompkins County households consisting of 900 adults and 647 children were the happy recipients of donations made to Share the Warmth. More than 4,500 items were picked up, collected, and sorted by volunteers for distribution through the Samaritan Center of Catholic Charities. The donated clothing was then distributed by Catholic Charities of Tompkins/Tioga free of charge to individuals who needed such items for the winter months.

Ithaca Rotary wishes to thank all of the locations around Tompkins County that set out the familiar "red box" collection bins: Agway True Value Home Center, Cornell University, GreenStar, Island Health & Fitness, Ithaca Agway True Value, Ithaca College, Kendal at Ithaca, P&C Fresh, State Theatre, TC-3, Tompkins Trust Company, Trumansburg ShurSave, Kinney Drugs of Dryden, Wegmans and the YMCA of Tompkins County.

Share The Warmth was initiated by the Ithaca Rotary Club in 1992. Nearly 30% of Ithaca children are eligible to receive free or reduced school lunch. Almost 20% of Tompkins County residents live below the poverty level, compared to 14% state-wide.

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