LPSO Teams up with BYH Foundation to Donate 800 Jackets to Children

As the temperatures continue to drop, Bless Your Heart Foundation partnered with the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office to help keep children in the community warm this winter by donating 800 jackets to schools across Lafourche Parish.

Captain Brennan Matherne of LPSO said the effort began as a uniform distribution in October 2021,  for children who were affected by Hurricane Ida. With winter just months away, LPSO decided to team up with Bless Your Heart Nonprofit Corporation to collect light jackets for children in the community.

“Bless Your Heart was already doing a uniform drive, and they were able to provide a new uniform for over 1,000 kids in Lafourche Parish schools after Hurricane Ida,” said Captain Matherne. “We knew the winter months were coming, and a lot of kids were going to need a jacket to go to school, so we started a jacket drive,” said Matherne.

 “We asked for brand new or slightly used jackets, we had about 250 jackets that were donated as a part of that drive. We realized that wouldn’t be enough, so we contacted Thibodaux Family Church to try to figure out how we could raise money or get additional jackets. Thibodaux Family Church reached out to the Lorio Foundation, and they were able to get a grant for $15,000, with those funds we were able to purchase 550 jackets.” Matherne added.

 Once receiving the grant, LPSO purchased brand-new coats from Johnny’s Men’s Shop and Jake’s Uniforms in Thibodaux. The Sheriff’s office then reached out to Bless Your Heart to help identify the schools in the community whose children were in great need of coats this winter. Matherne said 800 coats were distributed to children at Larose Cut Off Middle School, Raceland Middle School, North Larose Elementary, South Larose Elementary, Golden Meadow Middle School, and many more.

 “With so much going on during Hurricane Ida recovery, it’s a blessing to be involved in this endeavor to make sure every kid has a jacket for the winter,” reads a statement from Sheriff Craig Webre. “We are thankful to The Lorio Foundation for their generous donation, and we appreciate the efforts of Thibodaux Family Church and Bless Your Heart as we continue to rebuild Lafourche Parish.”

Hillary Krums Danos, Co-founder of the Bless Your Heart Foundation said working with LPSO to distribute jackets this winter was a great experience. “Receiving the donations we have, is truly an amazing feeling,” said Danos. “To know that we are living up to our mission statement to enrich lives and inspire hope by addressing social, educational, and financial needs in the Bayou Region.”Captain Brennan Matherne said providing assistance to students in the community is a joy to LPSO, and the Sheriff’s Office plans to continue to work with non-profit organizations to help those in need. “This was a great way for us to get involved in hurricane relief efforts and to help our kids, which is our most vulnerable population. It’s something we really appreciate the opportunity for and were happy to assist with.”