'We're lucky enough to be able to give' Average Joe’s Sports Bar hosts winter coat drive following fire last spring

Average Joe’s Sports Bar hosted a winter coat drive following fire last spring in Windsor, Ont. on Sunday, Nov. 26, 2023. (Chris Campbell/CTV News Windsor)

Average Joe’s Sports Bar hosted it’s annual winter coat drive on Sunday following several months of closed doors due to a fire last spring.

Gently used coats, hats, gloves and other winter wear were gathered to fill a trailer to eventually be delivered to those less fortunate in Windsor.

“You get out of your community what you put into it,” said owner Colleen Kelly, in partnership with Windsor Community Connections.

“We're lucky enough to be able to give to the community and they need it. They need to be warm. I personally take for granted every single time that I can put a hat on, I can put a pair of gloves on, I can put a jacket on if I want and the fact that people don't have that option, we need to take care of those that we have the opportunity to take care of."

Average Joe’s reopened on Nov. 2 after $200,000 in damages was caused by a fire on April 28, 2023.

“It was a long six months,” Kelly explained. “Business has been fun, it’s been busy. It’s great welcoming the community back, everyone was eager to get back. Staff was eager to come back to work as well.”

“We started doing a coat drive maybe four years ago. It just came up in the community that people needed coats. We have the vessel to host everyone in, the parking for people to show up and the networking to do so. So we rented a trailer from a gentlemen who actually donates it, load the trailer up and they’ll take it downtown and they’ll distribute coats downtown.”

“We also reach out to Windsor Youth Centre, Street Help and a couple other organizations that have reached out for some coats as well.”

“We take warmth for granted,” Kelly told CTV News. “The response is also so, so well received. People are so giving.”

Stephanie Smith with Windsor Community Connections said, “it’s getting pretty tough out there and that’s why I’m honoured to have them do this coat drive to help.

Smith said she hoped a couple hundred coats could be gathered, suggesting the need never stops rising.

“It makes my heart happy,” Smith said. “Because so many people are getting together to help and that’s what we need.it takes a community to raise a community.”