“I’ve been doing this for about nine years now, as far as owning this company and I started it from scratch,” Dorff said. “The people in the area have been really helpful and responsible for me being somewhat successful and I just felt it was time to give something back to community.”
Wendl confessed she partnered with Dorff without permission from higher ups last year, but they obviously liked the idea, since now the collections are districtwide.
“He (one of her bosses) came into the store and box was sitting there all full of coats and I thought oh, this might be the last day of my career,” Wendl said. “He said ‘what is that’ and I said it’s our coat drive and he didn’t say anything for a second or two and then he goes ‘that’s a really cool idea’.”
Last year they donated the winter wear to the Freestore Foodbank in Cincinnati. This year Wendl said they are hoping to also provide items to Matthew 25: Ministries and a mission at Faith Community Church in West Chester and are still looking for other places that can distribute the donations.
She said “gently used” and or new items are welcome.
“A rule of thumb would be gently used,” Wendl said. “The zippers have to work, the buttons have to work. And we have no problem is someone wants to donate some new things as well.”
Dorff said last year they also got cash donations and went out and purchased items.
The drive last year was successful merely by word of mouth. Dorff said he has lots of connections in the West Chester community — his wife also teaches art at Lakota so she has connections — and will be posting the drive on the web and getting the word out via other means.
Wendl said she is proud her company has embraced such a worthy effort.
“I’ve had the privilege of working for Sherwin Williams for four years and we are actually out in the community more than people realize…,” she said. “I think it’s so important that a large corporation like Sherwin Williams is actually out there. I think that’s one of the reason they wanted to make it districtwide.”
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