Coat drives near Sumter

For the first time since 2010, the poverty rate in America shot up dramatically in 2022, according to data from the Census Bureau. That means more Americans can't afford basic needs like food, clothing, shelter, and utilities than has been the case in more than a decade.

But the situation isn't just affecting Americans living in poverty. United Way uses the term ALICE to refer to the increasing number of people who are asset-limited, income-constrained, and employed but are still not able to afford their basic needs. In 2021, 13% of Americans earned below the federal poverty level but many more, 29%, fell under the ALICE umbrella, according to the grassroots movement United for ALICE.

A study published in August 2022 from Brandeis University found that more than 75% of low-income families working full-time cannot cover the cost of basic needs. What's more, fewer than 1 in 5 low-income Hispanic and Black families in particular are able to afford the costs of a household budget. "Full-time work alone isn't enough to cover the everyday essentials most families need to support themselves," the study's lead author, Pamela Joshi, who holds a doctorate in social policy, said in a statement.

If you're looking for ways to help, particularly as the temperatures drop and the holidays approach, consider cleaning out your closet and donating a coat to those in need. To help point you in the right direction, Stacker compiled a list of coat drives near Sumter using data from One Warm Coat, a nonprofit that provides free coats to children and adults in need across America. Since 1992, they've given out more than 7.85 million coats.

"This is one very small way to take a step forward and do something very tangible," One Warm Coat CEO Beth Amodio told USA Today in October 2023. "It's impossible to change the world. But it is possible to change one person's experience, one person at a time."

Read on to find out where you can contribute.

The Cooperative Ministry
- Address: 3821 W Beltline Blvd, Columbia, SC 29204

MOD Pizza: NE Columbia
- Address: 10296 Two Notch Rd, Suite 4, Columbia, SC 29229

MOD Pizza: Woodhill
- Address: 141 Pelham Dr, Suite B, Columbia, SC 29209

Palmetto Place Children and Youth Services
- Address: PO Box 3395, Columbia, SC 29230

Family Promise of the Midlands
- Address: 1333 Omarest Dr, Columbia, SC 29210

Lela Mae Hoefer Foundation
- Address: 2410A Augusta Rd, West Columbia, SC 29169

Lela Mae Hoefer Foundation
- Address: 2410A Augusta Road, West Columbia, SC 29169

MOD Pizza: Lexington
- Address: 5318 Sunset Blvd, Suite E, Lexington, SC 29072

New Life Healing Restoration Center
- Address: 1125 Neolithic Ct, Lexington, SC 29073

Medical Ministries Inc
- Address: 172 Morris Chapel Road, Dorchester, SC 29437

Quillah Cares
- Address: 751 Jacobs Millpond Road Apt 727, Elgin, SC 29045

Girl Scout Troop 2404 "Coat of Many Colors" Service Project
- Address: 2373 Calks Ferry Rd, Lexington, SC 29073

Ministerio Casa Jes�s
- Address: 117 Weeks Ave, Goose Creek, SC 29445

MOD Pizza: North Charleston
- Address: 2135 Ashley Phosphate Rd, Suite 102, North Charleston, SC 29406

Richmond County Rescue Mission
- Address: Place of Grace Campus, 252 School St., Rockingham, NC 28379