The early days of Amy Barton's Salina residency were difficult.

"I was pretty lonely. I didn't have any money," she said.

Homeless and pregnant, she first stayed at the Domestic Violence Association of Central Kansas shelter.

Barton lived with a friend, returned to DVACK and then moved to Ashby House, a shelter for families and individual women.

"I was working at a restaurant and took all the money I had and got me a motel room," Barton said.

Within a week, she moved into a Salina Housing Authority home. Her family in La Crosse helped her scrape together the money for utility deposits.

"I kept my job and worked up until two weeks before I had the baby," Barton said.

Ennocence was born Dec. 16, 2007. Mother and daughter still rent the Housing Authority home.

"It's got a wonderful big backyard," she said.

Today, they have a car, a dog -- Princess -- and Amy, 31, works as a certified fitter in the lingerie department at Dillard's in Central Mall.

She has a dream of owning a children's clothing business.

As Barton clawed her way to a stable life, she remembered Salina's kindness and the boost she was given during a dreary time.

"It's miraculous how people can help someone in need. It says a lot about the town. There are very generous people out here. I'll never forget," she said. "I always thought that someday I'll be able to give back."

A perfect way to repay came to her last month.

"I just woke up one morning and thought, 'I want to do a coat drive.' I went to work and my boss said I needed sponsors," Barton said. "I got sponsors and we did it."

With some organizational help from the Salina Area United Way, she was able to establish the "Gift of Warmth" project.

From collection points at Ashby House, 150 S. Eighth, Salina Family Healthcare Center, 651 E. Prescott, and the Salina Family YMCA, Barton collected approximately 700 coats of all sizes through the drive from during the month of October.

"People were really generous. There were some nice coats in there," she said.

The drive was "fantastic," said Lexy Schwarz, the YMCA's human resource director.

"It was very thoughtful, very nice to give to someone who could use a coat," she said. "We had great results. Our members all responded great."

Next came the distribution. Barton took 100 of the coats to Ashby House, and the rest were displayed in the lobby of the Salina Family Healthcare clinic, located in the former YWCA building.

"We displayed them in the front entryway. They were gone in two or three days," Barton said. "It was a perfect place for them to be."

Ashby House administrator Bryan Anderson called Barton's coat drive "a monumental effort." He was impressed with her passion for the project.

"She really addressed a specific need," Anderson said. "We've been able to help a lot of people with (the coats)."

It's common for clients to give back, he said. "They stay in contact, help us out."

Many people give to the United Way and give back to the community "after they get back on their feet," said Bill Weaver, the United Way's marketing director.

"Amy took it a different step," he said. "She made it more public, community oriented. That's what made it special."

When someone is helped by an agency and is able to improve her life, it sends a strong message, he said.

"For a single person to mastermind this, to me, that's really huge," Weaver said.

Barton said she's been receiving praise for her efforts.

"I'm really not doing anything big, just having a coat drive," she said. "It made me feel warm inside."

n Reporter Tim Unruh can be reached at 822-1419 or by e-mail at tunruh@salina.com.

Join the Discussion:

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A Beloit Girl says....
What a wonderful thing to do! Good job!!!
11/27/2009

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Tao Master says....
Good for her. It always helps to have family and community support. Too bad the father of Ennocence isn't there to help her and her mother.
11/26/2009

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CC says....
You go girl! You should be very proud of how far you have come. We need more people like you in the world.
11/26/2009

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