The Gift of Warmth
In early October, busloads of excited children entered a building in downtown Philadelphia where they were greeted by equally excited volunteers from a local community organization and boxes of brand new winter coats of all sizes and colors. In Philadelphia, where the average winter temperature is 35 degrees, and 126,144 children live in poverty, these children got to shop for the perfect coat and ensure they have a warm winter.
Driven by a desire to make an impact in the world, Sica joined Operation Warm in 2016 to develop the corporate partnerships program. After spending years working on climate change policy, she redirected her career and found that in social enterprise, she could make a lasting impact.
To gain a better understanding of business, Sica is pursuing her MBA. “Villanova provides me with the framework to develop the corporate program with confidence and acumen,” Sica said. “The wide array of courses that drew me to VSB has been invaluable,” For example, during her equity valuations class, she researched her largest corporate partners, Abercrombie & Fitch and FedEx, gaining insight into how corporations run and how she can better collaborate with them.
Operation Warm gifted 18,246 coats in 2017 to children in Philadelphia, but 16,244 coat requests remained unfunded. This year, the organization has already received requests for 60,130 coats nationally. To volunteer or to help, provide a coat, visit operationwarm.org.
Originally published in the Winter 2019 issue of Villanova Business Magazine.
Grace Sica ‘19 MBA
“It’s more than just a coat. It empowers a child with hope and self-confidence. My mission is to always make sure I can impact these kids in a positive way, and the coats do just that,”