SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) — More than a thousand students were gifted a brand-new coat ahead of the upcoming cold weather.

The Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Illinois hosted a coat drive for students. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois donated 1,700 jackets for the organization to give out. BGCCIL is handing out the coats at 22 locations in Springfield and Jacksonville.

Officials said the coat drive is the only opportunity many kids have to get something to keep them warm all season.

“Our kids don’t have coats in the winter,” Deann French, the director of marketing for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Illinois, said. “And even if they do, they’re kids and kids lose coats throughout the year, so there’s never a time when we’re not needing something like that.”

BlueCross BlueShield also hosted a turkey drive with the club Friday.