Student's drive will warm those in need

Student's drive will warm those in need
Shoes and jackets will be donated to anyone in need
BY KENNY WALTER Staff Writer

For a Long Branch High School (LBHS) student, a chance encounter with a homeless man is making a difference for many of the area's less fortunate.

PHOTOS BY KENNY WALTER Long Branch High School senior Lucy McGrath's chance encounter with a homeless person inspired her to begin collecting coats and shoes to be donated to those in need. Coats and shoes stored in a closet are evidence of the outpouring of donations from the school community. PHOTOS BY KENNY WALTER Long Branch High School senior Lucy McGrath's chance encounter with a homeless person inspired her to begin collecting coats and shoes to be donated to those in need. Coats and shoes stored in a closet are evidence of the outpouring of donations from the school community. LBHS senior Lucy McGrath has spent the better part of the last month walking around the school with a garbage bag filled with donated shoes and jackets collected for a drive she is running.

"Students throw them [shoes and coats] at me every day," she said. "Sometimes I go to class with a huge garbage bag."

McGrath said the idea started last year when she had a random encounter on a cold winter day. After she was elected to the position of community service coordinator of the high school honors society, she decided to move forward with the drive.

"When I saw this homeless man walking around with this jacket that was falling off him, I told everybody our first huge project should be collecting shoes and jackets," she said. "They are definitely really essential.

"We have an annual can drive every year in which we give poor families canned food," she added. "However, they are so cold during the winter."

McGrath, who is planning to attend Boston University next year, said the drive ran officially from Oct. 1 to Oct. 30, but the planning started the previous school year.

"Officially it started on Oct. 1, but the planning started way last year, either March or April," she said.

With the drive ending, McGrath said the coats and shoes would be distributed in November.

"On Nov. 13 from 5 to 7 p.m. we are going to be distributing all these things to anyone who needs them," she said. "Anything extra will go to the homeless shelter in Long Branch.

"Anybody that needs anything can come," she added.

The coats and shoes are currently stored in a storage closet at the school's library, and distribution will take place at the school's cafeteria.

McGrath said that there are no conditions imposed for the recipients of the coats and shoes.

"We are just going to depend on people's honesty," she said.

McGrath set up a contest where the homeroom that brought in the most items would receive a prize, but she said the prize didn't matter for most.

"Whichever homeroom would bring in the most shoes and jackets, would win a cake party," she said. "What was really cool was the incentive didn't even matter, people just brought them in."

McGrath said that the last official count was two weeks ago when students had collected more than 600 items.

"Well over 600 items since we last counted about a week ago [Oct. 30]," she said. "I think we get about 50 things a day."

McGrath said when she did her last inventory on the items collected, the only demographic that they don't have much for is little girls.

"We are missing little girls' shoes and jackets," she said.

McGrath has campaigned for more donations throughout the month, which led at least one student to give the clothes right off his back.

"This is really all I talk about now, and in one of my classes I was like 'shoe and jacket drive, guys, come on,'" McGrath said. "This kid took his jacket off his back and I thought he was just being obnoxious.

"I said, 'No, you can keep the jacket you are wearing,'" she added. "He said, 'No, seriously, I was homeless once and you'd be surprised just how much school-wide shoes and jacket drives really help people.' Then he proceeded to donate like seven more things."

Contact Kenny Walter at

kwalter@gmnews.com.