COLUMBIA, Tenn. — Maury Regional Health (MRH) employees stepped up yet again to help the less fortunate with the second annual Socktober sock drive in October.
Collection sites in the Java Junction and cafeteria at Maury Regional Medical Center collected 397 pairs of socks in October to be donated to the Maury Regional Mobile Medical Clinic and the Crossroads to Home Café shelter in Columbia.
“Our staff, as always, came through in a big way during Socktober,” said Jerry Coulter, director of food and nutrition for MRH. “This is a great cause that helps those in our community who most need it. There will be tens of thousands of socks donated nationally again this year, and we’re really proud to be a part of it.”
Socktober is a national movement started in 2021 by Morrison Healthcare, a food and nutrition services company that partners with MRH, and its parent company Compass One Healthcare. The first event last year collected more than 138,000 pairs of socks nationwide.
“We can’t say enough about our employees for donating and the Food and Nutrition department for organizing Socktober again this year,” said Joe Kilgore, executive director of the Maury Regional Health Care Foundation. “These donations are so important to the patients we serve.”
Socks are one of the most needed items for the homeless population, especially during the fall and winter months when the temperature drops.
“We assist lots of underserved people, and as the weather gets cold, we have learned that socks are one of the most important things to have on hand to help them,” said Lori Bergland, RN, the community health nurse for the Maury Regional Mobile Medical Clinic. “As you might imagine, many of the people we see walk everywhere they go, so it is so important that their shoes fit well and they have a warm, dry pair of socks.
“It is such a blessing and a wonderful act of kindness that the Food and Nutrition department hosts an annual Socktober sock drive. They not only realized that such a basic thing can literally change someone’s life, but they went to work to make a difference. We are so grateful for their kindness and look forward to being able to pass their generosity on to those who need them.”
