March 2021
The cold COVID winter is warmer for dozens of households, thanks to a donation of $4,500 worth of new space heaters to United Way of Missoula County from the Old Sawmill District and Wetherbee Group Real Estate.
United Way arranged for the 125 heaters to be distributed through six area nonprofits: Human Resource Council, Missoula Aging Services, Missoula Food Bank, Missoula Housing Authority, Seeley Lake Community Foundation, and YWCA of Missoula. “This was a timely donation, and we’re grateful to help facilitate this distribution from our friends in the Old Sawmill District,” said Susan Hay Patrick, United Way chief executive officer.
Bridget Baxter, operations director for the Wetherbee Group Real Estate and OSD Property Management – developers and managers of Missoula’s Old Sawmill District residential/commercial project – explained that “a few weeks ago we found ourselves in an emergent situation, dealing with loss of heat in one of our residential buildings. In response, we purchased space heaters and were lucky to have the problem resolved quickly. Knowing others in the community may be going without heat during winter months, we saw an opportunity to help by donating the purchased heaters to help them.”
Aaron Brock, executive director of Missoula Food Bank, said the 30 space heaters distributed by the food bank “were gone in a single day, and folks were excited to get them.”
