04 Nov 2024 Arkansas PBS spreads warmth with Mister Rogers’ Sweater Drive

CONWAY (Arkansas PBS) — Arkansas PBS and more than 85 organizations across the state have partnered for the Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood Sweater Drive as a tribute to Fred Rogers and his example of a caring neighbor. The drive will be held Nov. 1-30.

“The timeless values that children learn from Fred Rogers continue to resonate,” Arkansas PBS Executive Director and CEO Courtney Pledger said. “Fred Rogers’ iconic cardigan sweater symbolizes the gentle spirit and kindness of the neighborhood.

“Arkansas PBS is honored to carry forward his legacy, collaborating with remarkable partners throughout the state for the Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood Sweater Drive.”

During the Neighborhood Sweater Drive, members of the community are asked to donate new or gently worn sweaters and other cold-weather clothing at participating libraries, schools and businesses statewide or at Arkansas PBS headquarters in Conway. Collected items will be distributed by various local charities.

Walmart is the supporting sponsor for the statewide Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood Sweater Drive.

“All of us, at some time or other, need help,” Fred Rogers said. “And, whether we’re giving or receiving a sweater, each one of us has something valuable to bring to this world.

“That’s one of the things that connects us as neighbors – in our way, everyone is a giver and receiver.”

Additional information, including the full list of drop-off locations, is available at myarpbs.org/sweaterdrive.

To help set the tone for a “comfortable” visit with his young viewers, Rogers put on a sweater and changed into sneakers to help children settle in for “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.” All of Rogers’ original sweaters were knitted by his mother, Nancy McFeely Rogers. Each year, she knitted a dozen sweaters and gave them to family and close friends at Christmas.

For more than 40 years, “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” PBS’s longest-running children’s series, earned four Daytime Emmys. As a testament to his legacy, Rogers received a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997 and was recognized in 2002 with a Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor, for his contributions to children’s development and education using broadcast television.

The Fred Rogers Company was founded by Rogers in 1971 as the nonprofit producer of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” for PBS. In the years that followed, it not only created hundreds of episodes, but it also extended Rogers’ values and approach to other efforts in promoting children’s social, emotional and behavioral health and supporting parents, caregivers, teachers and other professionals in their work with children. The Fred Rogers Company continues to build on his legacy through a wide variety of media and by engaging new generations of children and families with his timeless wisdom. Additional information is available at FredRogers.org.