(WNY News Now) – The annual Gift of Warmth campaign, which has become the region’s longest-running winter clothing collection drive, is now expanding with a new partner and into a new city. M&T Bank has teamed up with Tops Friendly Markets to bring the campaign into Tops stores, and together, they have grown the drive from Buffalo into the Rochester area. The Gift of Warmth campaign encourages donations of new hats, gloves, mittens, and scarves, which The Salvation Army distributes to families in need and individuals who are without shelter.
Buffalo – The expansion of the Gift of Warmth campaign comes as The Salvation Army continues to see community needs growing across Buffalo and Rochester. Now through January 5, Gift of Warmth donations can be dropped off in the collection boxes at any M&T Bank branch or select Tops Markets location across the greater Buffalo-Rochester region.
The Salvation Army quickly distributes all winter gear collected to the people they serve. Donated items will remain local to the region where they are collected.
The Gift of Warmth was created in 1985 when a small group of M&T Bank employees came together to encourage their colleagues to donate winter clothing items to The Salvation Army. As the years went on, this small group effort transformed into a community-wide campaign and has since collected over 41,500 winter clothing items — all distributed by The Salvation Army to local families, children, and individuals.
The drive accepts donations of new hats, gloves, mittens, and scarves.
To find the nearest M&T Bank or Tops Friendly Markets location to make a donation, visit locations.mtb.com or topsmarkets.com/store locator. A total of 92 M&T branches and 49 Tops stores are participating. Gift of Warmth donation boxes can be found inside Tops front vestibules and M&T branch lobbies.
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