Oklahoma City’s Gulfport Energy has donated more than $5,000 in winter coats to school children in Oklahoma City and it came just in time.
The contribution came on the day snow hit the metro as representatives of the company handed out the coats to children at the Van Buren Elementary school on SW 40th street.
“Gulfport is committed to giving back to the vibrant communities where we live and operate,” said External Relations Coordinator, Courtney Dickens. “Projects such as Coat-A-Kid have a significant impact and this is Gulfport’s second year partnering with the Foundation for Oklahoma City Public Schools on this initiative. Gulfport looks forward to providing coats to students at Van Buren Elementary School and is excited to see the positive impacts created by this project,” she added.
The delivery of the coats came after Gulfport Energy donated more than $5,000 to help fund the Coat-a-Kid campaign led by the Foundation for Oklahoma City Public schools. The foundation raises money every year to provide new winter coats for students in need.
“On behalf of Van Buren Elementary, I would like to thank Gulfport Energy for your generous contribution of winter coats for all of our bulldogs in South OKC,” said Amparo Macías, Principal at Van Buren Elementary. “The coats will help to keep many little ones warm here at Van Buren during the winter months. Words cannot express the deep gratitude we have for your organization and the help provided by the Foundation for OKCPS in the coordination of making it possible for our students to obtain these winter coats. Now our students will be able to walk warmly to and from school during the winter months,” she added.
The Superintendent for Oklahoma City Public Schools, Dr. Sean McDaniel, said he was also thankful for Gulfport Energy’s donation to benefit students at Van Buren Elementary. “We are very grateful for Gulfport Energy’s donation and for stepping in and helping support our students,” said McDaniel. “This type of community support not only warms students’ bodies but they also warm all of our hearts. We have said time and time again that the best investment our community partners can make for the future is to invest in our students and schools. By keeping our students warm and healthy during the cold winter months, we are ultimately helping them attend school regularly, which will help them stay on track academically,” he added.
“We are truly appreciative of Gulfport Energy’s support in providing new winter coats for students at Van Buren Elementary,” said Mary Mélon, President and CEO at the Foundation for Oklahoma City Public Schools. “When temperatures drop, thousands of Oklahoma City Public Schools students will not have a coat to keep them warm. It’s a shocking statistic and yet a reality for these children as Oklahoma City Public Schools is the state’s largest school district with 46,000 students and 90 percent of them live at or below the poverty line. That is why we would like to encourage other organizations and individuals to also become Partners in Action and join the Coat-A-Kid campaign and help provide winter coats for our students,” she said.