Our flagship activity, the Coats for Kids program ensures that no child in North America goes without a coat during the winter season. Through the dedication of councils across the United States and Canada, hundreds of thousands of new winter coats have been distributed to children since program inception.

Councils across North America can purchase new winter coats at a discount to be distributed to the children in need in their local communities.

When families struggle to clothe their children with warm coats in the winter, Knights of Columbus councils help meet this basic need with the Coats for Kids program. As part of the Neighbors Helping Neighbors initiative that resulted from a Knights of Columbus-sponsored summit held in New York City, Coats for Kids allows councils across North America to purchase new winter coats for children at a discount and to distribute them to children in need in their local communities.

Since the program’s launching in 2009, nearly 500,000 coats have been distributed in 49 states and all 10 Canadian provinces. In winter 2017 alone, the Knights of Columbus distributed 105,192 coats in 1,600 communities throughout the U.S. and Canada, including events at military bases, in Native American communities, at inner-city neighborhoods and through partnerships with local police and fire departments.