Annual Warm Bodies, Warm Souls clothing drive returns statewide
One of the largest clothing drives in the Beehive State returned this week and will be accepting donations through mid-November.
Bank of Utah kicked off its 12th annual Warm Bodies, Warm Souls clothing drive on Monday. Donations for the drive will be accepted at drop boxes in branches throughout the state, as well as at Red Hanger and Arctic Circle locations, from now until Nov. 15.
Donations will also be accepted at the Gandy Dancer Mercantile in Ogden. Additionally, cash donations can be made online.
Megan Kenley, the bank’s communications and marketing specialist, told the Standard-Examiner that more than 600 “giant” bags full of clothing were donated during the 2023 drive.
“We’re able to help so much of the state with this drive, which has just been really amazing,” Kenley said. “And it really isn’t possible without the partnerships that we have with Red Hanger and Arctic Circle. … It has just been a lot of fun to see it grow and see the number of donations that we’ve been getting and then just the communities that we live in. They’re just amazing to come out and not just donate clothes, but to donate handmade items and things like that.”
Donations will be distributed among 15 local charities, including The Road Home Utah, Switchpoint Community Resource Center, Cache Valley Humanitarian Center, Utah Foster Care and others.
“We are so grateful to be a part of this amazing initiative. Warm Bodies, Warm Souls really does make such a big impact,” said Rachel Felton, marketing specialist at The Road Home, in a press release. “The need for warm clothing is so huge and as temperatures drop, the need is only going to rise.”
While all kinds of donations will be accepted, charities are looking for gently used coats, hats, scarves, gloves and blankets. They are also looking for donations of new underwear and socks, according to Kenley.
Donors can receive a free double cheeseburger coupon from Arctic Circle or free shirt cleaning voucher from Red Hanger.
There are 21 Bank of Utah branches across the state, including 18 with full banking services. However, there are more than 70 drop-off locations in total between the partnering organizations from Logan to St. George.
For a map of donation locations across the state or to make a cash donation, go to https://www.bankofutah.com/clothing-drive/.