MOUNT AIRY, N.C. — “Just give it away! Give that coat away, baby,” sings Traci George as she drives around filling coat racks in Mount Airy.
What You Need To Know
Traci George has organized Take a Coat, Leave a Coat for three years now
George's racks stocked with free coats can be found at various spots around Mount Airy
George was diagnosed with leukemia last March but has since won her battle against cancer
This is George's third year organizing her project called Take a Coat, Leave a Coat. Her racks can be found at: White Elephant, Chase N Charli, Helping Hands Foundation, Ol' Farmer, Mrs. D's Grill & Take Out, NIT, PLLC, Donna's Barber Shop and the Mountain Valley Hospice Re-Sale Shoppe.
“I was just piddling on the internet really and ran across this project. I was like, 'I wonder if this could work in Mount Airy?' And that’s how it got started,” George said.
Since she began the project, George has added coat racks to eight different locations across the area.
“The first year, I was out here doing my little coat rack right here at this location, this was my first one. This little man walked up and asked me if these coats were free and I said, 'absolutely.' So he took a coat, and I was honored to be here and experience it,” George said.
She says there is also something about seeing one of her family or friend's coats on someone in need.
“I see some people wearing the coats that my friends donate, anyway, it’s just a cool little thing. If they want to take five coats, take five coats," she said. "I mean, they’ve all been donated, we’re going to take them somewhere, to the Goodwill or somewhere and they're going to sell them, so why not just give something away."
George has had multiple people reach out wanting her to expand into nearby towns.
“I've also had folks in Pilot Mountain and Dobson that also want to start this project. With a community effort and people helping me manage the coats, making sure the racks are still up and making sure they’re still full, we can extend to Pilot and Dobson as well,” George said.
The outpour of community effort has been so successful this year, George can't even keep track of how many coats have been donated.
“Can I just say, a lot of coats? I’m super thankful. I’m pretty sure, I would say over 100 coats within the time I put the racks up,” George said.
The road to where she is now, however, was a bumpy one.
“In March of last year, I was diagnosed with leukemia. I was in Miami on a girls trip and had some crazy bruisings pop up … we all decided that I should go to the ED, so I did and they ran some bloodwork and they said, 'Mrs. George, you’re not going anywhere, you're being admitted and you’ve been diagnosed with leukemia,'” George recalled.
The same friends and family that have been backing her since her battle against leukemia, continue to support her in her many community projects.