It all started with a boy named Tom whose parents were in prison. He had no warm clothes for winter and his only shoes belonged to an older sibling and were too big to stay on his feet. That’s when Jamie Skinner stepped in. She bought him a coat, gloves, boots and warm school clothes for Christmas. Skinner had learned about Tom, a first grade student in her twin sister Emily’s school class in Clearfield and wanted to help. That desire led her to start The Winter Foundation in 2005.

“When after-Christmas sales started, Jamie thought about how many other kids in Davis County would need warm winter clothes the next winter,” said her mother Nelda Bishop. “She bought all the winter coats, gloves and boots she could afford on sale and she shared her vision with the Davis School District, family, friends, neighbors and church groups.”

 She created a tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization and the gifting grew year by year to include 351 students this year, said Bishop. “She coordinates with the Davis Education Foundation so gifting is not duplicated.”

Jamie’s focus began with Davis County elementary schools in high poverty areas, Bishop said. “She began by donating to students recommended by school administrators as having inadequate warm winter clothing. She expanded to include siblings of these elementary students who didn’t have warm winter clothing either.” 

Next she included students in foster care, especially those who were special needs, said Bishop. “Then she began including foster kids who would never go back with their parents and were also too old to be considered adoptable. These foster kids would soon age out of state support and suddenly be totally on their own to pay for housing and food and transportation and many would also have no continuing emotional support from their foster parents.”

The Winter Foundation has been able to help some of these foster kids set up a kitchen and buy bedding to be on their own, she said. “The Foundation was also able to arrange for a donated playground for a special-needs group home, carpet and a big television for a Christmas Box emergency children’s group shelter, a cello donated to a young musician in foster care (which he played in court for the judge when he was later adopted), new computers for a few gifted high school science students, and nice, sturdy duffle bags so foster kids no longer had to put everything they owned into a big garbage bag to get ready to move once again.”

Skinner stores boxes and boxes of the clothing items and with the help of family and friends they sort them into sizes for boys and girls.

 “Mostly, Santa, through The Winter Foundation, brings warm coats, gloves, boots, pants, shirts, underwear and shoes in the size the child wears,” said Bishop. “They also provide gift cards, new pillows, modest toys and a Christmas stocking.”

One hundred percent of the donations go toward gifts for children in need, she said. “There is no paid staff, no one is reimbursed for time or travel, and all storage space is donated.”

For more information visit TheWinterFoundation.org.λ