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Jefferson Preschool Students Will Receive New Coats & Shoes Thanks To Moline Optimist Club

New shoes and coats will be given to students at Jefferson Early Childhood Center in Moline on Wednesday.

The Moline Breakfast Optimist Club has provided around 2,000 pairs of shoes and over 250 coats since this program began at the school 21 years ago.

Principal Rachel Fowler sees first hand the importance of this program.

"Just today for example, one of our little friends was getting off the bus, and as I was doing bus duty, she showed me her shoes. And she was happy to show me her shoes, but looking at them I could tell they might be a little small for her. They were very worn. In my mind, I was looking at her shoes thinking, oh this is wonderful. This Wednesday the Optimist are gonna be coming, and she's gonna get a new pair of shoes."

This annual event is possible through fundraising and member donations, and shoes and coats are given out based on need.

The school and Optimist Club have also started a library program that teaches Jefferson students the importance of reading.

McCoy is a Junior at Augustana College majoring in Journalism and Economics. McCoy hopes to be a sports journalist one day.