Holyrood Cemetery’s annual clothing drive helps neighbors in need

SHORELINEBy Kim Haub

Six years ago, Holyrood Cemetery staff members decided to help the needy at Christmastime by giving them something very basic — socks.

“We wanted to find a way to give back to our community,” said office manager Kristi Fawbush, who began the annual donation effort with coworkers Linda Smith and Lois Knutsen.

“It started out as a sock drive to help the homeless stay warm during Pacific Northwest winters and it has grown into a sock, hat, mitten and scarf drive,” Fawbush said.

The clothing items are distributed by Catholic Community Services to homeless men and families in transition in Snohomish County.

The drive begins every year on All Souls’ Day, Nov. 2, and many people bring their donations when they come to visit the graves of their loved ones, Fawbush said. The items are gathered under the cemetery’s “remembrance tree,” where visitors are invited to write the name of a deceased friend or family member on an “angel card” and hang it on a branch. “The tree will be filled with cards by Christmas,” Knutsen said.

Each year, the drive grows through word-of-mouth, Fawbush said. In 2012, more than 410 items were donated by an estimated 220 families. Donors include two unidentified women who have brought colorful handmade scarves and hats the past two years. “They just drop and run without us even knowing they were here,” Fawbush said. “They are like our little angels.”

The organizers are hoping for even more donations this year. “We will take just about anything that will help keep people warm,” Fawbush said. Items must be new; cash donations are also accepted.

All donations are taken to the CCS Snohomish County Family Center in Everett, where they are given to those in need; baby socks go to the center’s layette program.

The need for men’s socks is especially great, said Vicki Howell, director of housing development for CCS of Snohomish County. Men often arrive at the center wearing flip-flops, and their feet are wet and cold. “It is great when we can give them a new pair of socks to put on. It really makes their day,” Howell said. “We just don’t value enough what a warm pair of socks can mean to a person.”

How to donate Holyrood Cemetery is accepting donations of new, warm clothing through Dec. 13. Cash donations are also accepted. Donations can be dropped off or sent to the cemetery, located at 205 N.E. 205th St. in Shoreline. For more information, call 206-363-8404.

December 9, 2013