Courtesy of Catherine DiTuri

In the winter of 2020, social worker Cynthia Spears looked out the window to see a family walking wrapped in blankets — not coats — day after day. 

“I thought, if my mother were alive, she would do something about that,” Spears said. “My mother was an elementary school teacher for the City of New Haven for about 40 years, and she always kept a closet in her classroom with clothes for kids in need to wear.” 

That winter, Spears founded Ruth’s Kids Closet in honor of her late mother, Ruth. Spears has since donated hundreds of winter coats. In the first year, a $10,000 grant from the pandemic-era Yale Community for New Haven Fund allowed Spears to donate 300 coats to New Haven kids, along with an educational book on the COVID-19 virus. When she received an additional donation of 125 adult coats, they were gone within one hour.    

Ruth’s Kids Closet has donated around 55 coats to the Newhallville community so far this season, funded by a $1,500 grant from the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. 35 of these coats were donated to students at the Lincoln-Bassett Community School, a neighborhood elementary school. 

Spears said she currently has about 30 more coats to donate, but aims to provide at least 500 this year. With the help of another recent $2,000 grant from the Community Foundation, Ruth’s Kids Closet is closer to that goal. 

“I want to make sure I give as many coats out as possible,” Spears said.

Spears is not alone in her efforts. Other organizations around New Haven have collected hundreds of coats for donation this winter. 

Youth Continuum, a nonprofit that provides support and housing for at-risk and homeless youth, partnered with Epsilon Iota Iota, a local chapter of an adult fraternity, and chemical manufacturer THOR Specialties to collect coats for New Haven youth.  

“You think it’s something simple, but a coat goes a long way for someone who hasn’t had a coat,” Ruel Dixon, leader of the fraternity chapter, said. 

Each organization partnered with Youth Continuum donated over 100 coats, according to Youth Continuum’s Director of Development Catherine DiTuri. 

As part of Epsilon Iota Iota’s annual Achievement Week in November, the fraternity hosted a week-long coat and hygiene product drive. 

“A lot of the work that [we] do as a fraternity is encompassing upliftment of the Black community, but also working with youth,” Dixon said. “With those two components coming together, we decided to do the coat drive with Youth Continuum.” 

As she works toward her 500-coat goal, Spears, who retired on Jan. 31, plans to write more grants and host fundraising events. She said she also hopes to partner with Walmart, Costco and other department stores to have her purchases partially matched by donations. 

Currently, Spears prefers to work directly with social workers to find families in need to avoid an overwhelming number of requests from people she will have to let down. 

“We always are in need of items: new underwear, socks, T-shirts, sweatpants — all genders, all sizes,” DiTuri, of the Youth Continuum, said. “They’re always in need, unfortunately.” 

Youth Continuum also has a warming center open daily from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. for young adults ages 18 to 24, located at 317 Winthrop Ave.