By Sal Ghamo

On Thursday, March 3, the Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts teamed up with Operation Warm to donate 200 coats to the children in Somerville. The event was held at the YMCA. More than 2,000 children will be outfitted with brand-new winter coats because of the Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts.

The statewide union partnered with Operation Warm, a national, non-profit organization that has provided new coats to more than 1.5 million children in need. In addition to the coats donated to kids in Somerville, the remaining coats will be given to children in Brockton, Dorchester, Fall River, Hyannis, and Springfield through fundraising of the Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts, and a generous donation of $25,000 from BNY Mellon.

In addition to the 200 coats donated at the YMCA, there are also 100 coats being donated to the East Somerville Community School. In 2012, Operation Warm and the International Association of Firefighters launched a partnership that spans the US and Canada. The organization has provided more than 1.7-million coats to children in need. The coats are all USA made, and children being fitted for them have the option of picking their favorite color, and writing their name on the interior tag.

After unloading the fire truck at the YMCA, the mayor of Somerville, Joseph Curtatone, addressed the children and thanked the firefighters in Somerville who took on this very special project. He gave a special thank you to Tom Ross, the head of the Firefighters Local Unit, and Jay Colbert from the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts, whom are both in huge part responsible for raising more than $70,000, and buying more than 2000 coats. Keeping kids healthy and in school is the primary goal, and everything happening in Somerville is going in the direction of achieving that goal.