It all started in 2021 when Georgia Welcome wanted a way to help children in need. She decided to make hats for the winter season and on December 12 she donated more than 200 handmade hats to the Canady's Coats for Kids campaign. This is the fourth year of the Canady’s Coats for Kids campaign, which collects coats for the United Way of the Coastal Empire to distribute to children in need in Bryan, Chatham, Effingham, and Liberty Counties.

Courtney Carpenter of Canady's Heating • Air • Plumbing noted that this is the third year that Mrs. Welcome has donated hats. “Mrs. Welcome contacted Canady’s regarding a possible donation of 100 hats in 2021, and of course we said yes,” Carpenter explained. “This year, she approached us again, and said that she made 234 hats for this effort. Her donation and the donations made by other people show our area’s children that people really do care and want to help others. Since 2021, Mrs. Welcome has made and donated more than 550 hats and winter headbands to Canady’s Coats Campaign.”

According to Mrs. Welcome, she started making the hats as a way to stay busy during the pandemic. “One day I saw something in the news about the Canady’s Coats for Kids effort and I reached out to them about donating some hats to their cause. I just wanted to do something to help others.”

Making the hats is a labor of love for Mrs. Welcome, who noted that she spends two to three hours making one hat. “I could probably sell the hats for $20 apiece, but I would rather help out children in need,” she said. This year she made a few Ghost Pirates hats in addition to headbands and other hat designs. Next year Mrs. Welcome plans to add some Savannah Bananas hats to her effort. “I’ve already started buying yarn on sale at different stores and have begun making hats for next year.”

Canady's Coats for Kids has again partnered with the United Way of the Coastal Empire to collect donations of new, unused coats for children ages infant to 17 years old. 

Canady’s Coats for Kids will have donation sites at several convenient locations. This year, Belk at Oglethorpe Mall has joined the effort. Collection boxes will be inside each donation site’s lobby through Wednesday, January 3, 2024.