Department 56 Donates 100 Handmade Coats

Eden Prairie-based giftware retailer Department 56 Inc. donated more than 100 handmade winter jackets to The Salvation Army “Coats for Kids” program, which provides warm winter clothing to children in need.

The blue and red winter jackets, made by Ely, Minn.-based Wintergreen Designs, are field-tested and among the best in the world. They were distributed Oct. 28 – 29 at two Salvation Army facilities in Minneapolis.

“We are grateful for Department 56’s generous contribution,” said Major Darryl Leedom, commander of the Twin Cities Salvation Army. “Because of their kindheartedness, dozens and dozens of kids will stay warm all winter long.”

Department 56 is a popular giftware and collectibles company best known for its hand-crafted lighted villages and Snowbabies™ figurines. The company bought the jackets with about $10,000 raised through a Snowbabies™ anniversary sweepstakes. (See www.department56.com.)

Another important corporate ally was Lands’ End, which collected nearly 900 coats. The apparel store’s contribution helped The Salvation Army collect a total of 6,300 coats from Sept. 29 – Oct. 12.

“That’s a 1,500-coat increase over last year’s Coats for Kids,” Leedom added. “We could not have achieved this success without the help of Lands’ End, Department 56 and the rest of our wonderful sponsors – 5 Eyewitness News, 102.9 LITE FM, Kowalski’s Markets, US Cleaners, Home Valu Interiors, Commers Water, and the Star Tribune.”