Meet Sherri McCoy | Mom of Rose Marie and Co-founder of Blessing Bags of Warmth for the Homeless

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sherri McCoy and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sherri, can you tell us more about your background and the role it’s played in shaping who you are today?
I’m mostly an Atlanta girl. I was born overseas to military parents but we relocated to Atlanta when I was around 3 or 4 years old. We settled in East Atlanta off of what is now called Hosea Williams Rd. My grandmother lived less than a mile away on Hutchinson Street. A bulk of my willingness to serve comes from having watched my grandmother, Louise White, do many of the same things Rose and I do now.

As a small child I remember her packing sandwiches to give to the hungry when we went downtown to pay the water bill. She cooked more chicken pot pies to take over a friend’s house who was sick than I could ever count.

My other greatest impact would be that of my father, Andrew McCoy, Jr. After serving more than 20 years in the United States Air Force, he came home and his serving didn’t end. He was always willing to lend a hand wherever needed. A very long car ride in the opposite direction of our house just to help a person stranded stands out. And of course there were the numerous times that he gifted money to friends and family members in need and never expected return payment.

Over the years my desire to help people continued and now it appears as though I’ve passed that desire onto my 8 year old daughter Rose.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
We are definitely in the infant stages of forming a nonprofit so I can honestly tell you that we are still learning. We face challenges daily! Trying to figure out ways to gather enough funds to purchase the necessary items seems to be our largest challenge but we’re soldiering on. At this time we are relying solely on the generosity of those around us to propel us forward.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I feel like our first stop should be somewhere that even I have not yet had a chance to visit. That would be the National Center for Civil and Human Rights. After an informative afternoon we would then take them to the Polaris restaurant that sits atop The Hyatt regency. Although I have not gone since they reopened I hear that it’s still just as awesome an experience and of course the breathtaking view of this marvelous city can’t be beat. After such a busy day I think our next trip would be to The Woodhouse Day spa. I’ve heard nothing but good things about their massage services. Next I would let Rose pick an activity. I’m pretty sure she would pick lunch at Big Bang Pizza in Brookhaven, followed up by a chance to get her wiggles out at Andretti Indoor Karting and Games. A great choice especially since it’s fun for kids and even fun for adults. The next day I think I would like for it to be a little bit low-key so I think a visit to Atlanta Botanical Garden would be in order followed by dinner at Fogo de Chao Brazilian steakhouse. Then we would finish their trip by traveling a little north of the city to Lawrenceville. We’d take in dinner and a show at Medieval Times after getting in a little retail therapy at Sugarloaf Mills. Then we would bid them farewell with a care package of Georgia pecans and peach preserves.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Well, that’s a very easy question to answer, My daughter, Rose Marie! Although I have always had a desire to help the un-housed community it wasn’t until my 8 year old daughter expressed an interest to continue to help them more that I started having a desire to form an actual organization. From as young as 3 years old Rose would accompany me to feed an offer hygiene and snack packs to the un-housed around the city. It was definitely a much smaller scale than what we offer now. The weekend after Thanksgiving 2020 we went out as we often would do to serve meals. But on that day it was something different, Rose had a desire to do a lot more. She wanted to make sure that the people had blankets because it was getting cold. She wanted to make sure they had more food and a way to carry their items. On that day she asked if she could use some money that she had received to buy blankets and so we did. We have been continuing to provide necessities to the unhoused ever since. Along with the help of several friends, family members, community members, and perfect strangers we have continued to go out several days a week to check on people we have come to refer to as neighbors.

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