rwich City School District, in collaboration with The Place, is once again taking on the task of providing all Norwich students with winter-appropriate clothing in time for the holiday season.

Faculty and staff at NCSD have done something to help out the district’s most needy families during the holidays for more than 30 years. Their efforts continue this year as the school takes in new clothing donations at Gibson, Perry Browne, the middle school and the high school in hopes of providing some of the areas most needy children with warmth for the season. Already, more than 180 families have requested clothing for their kids and that number will only grow as the request deadline draws near, said NCSD Social Worker Kelly Colosi.

“A lot of our families struggle during the holidays,” said Colosi. “We don’t want to see that struggle. We want all of our students to experience the same joy; but this really is a community supported effort.”

To help in the effort, a Christmas tree decorated in paper snowflakes – each snowflake containing the age, grade and clothing sizes of a student in need – has been set up at the Norwich Wal-Mart. Snowflakes are also available at the main office of each school throughout the district. In addition, The Place is soliciting monetary donations from local businesses and community members that will in turn be used to purchase new clothing. It’s a four-year-old partnership that has benefitted hundreds of families and students of every grade level, noted Colosi.

“So far the response has been incredible,” she said, citing tremendous community support over the years. “We have had some great volunteers. We’re really hoping that the program will be as much a success this year as it has every year.”