Hi all!
What a great month it has been for Phoenix West Valley Project Linus. This month marks our donation of OVER 10,000 BLANKETS to children in the West Valley going through hard times.
Without you, our terrific blanketeers, we would only be a cute name. It is your hard work and dedication that comforts so many children in need.
Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for all you each do to make our chapter so strong.
Just in case you doubt the strength of a blanket, read on:
v Debi Rice writes:
Dear Project Linus, I am a foster mom in Phoenix, Arizona. The babies
who come into our home have each been blessed with a Project Linus
blanket. Each blanket has been beautiful and my babies have attached
to them quickly. Although I have blankets here at home, the Project
Linus blankets are THEIRS to keep and take with them if and when they
leave. In a home where lots of things are \"community\" items, keeping
their OWN blanket is a great way to offer security. Thanks for this
ministry!
v Hi Everyone:
I thought I'd share a story about a delivery I made yesterday. Last
Friday, an 11 year old boy, Trevor, was killed on his snowmobile,
when he hit a tree. I contacted the school to see if they'd like
some blankets, and the principal said yes. I dropped them off on Mon
morning; I left a card with the school secretary. I received a call
yesterday morning (8 a.m.) from the secretary. First she apologized
profusely for not saying more when I dropped off the blankets. Then
she went on to say how amazed the teachers and parents were at the
difference the blankets made for the kids. She said they had
thought, "These are 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. . . They won't want a
blanket." (How many times have we thought/heard that? pb). . .
The blankets were taken to the funeral home, where children were
allowed to visit Monday. The secretary said it was an extremely
difficult experience for the kids, but Trevor's mother gave each
child a blanket and it changed everything. The mother had apparently
spent most of the previous 2 days in Trevor's room, wrapped in his
favorite blanket. A 5th grade boy brought his blanket to school on
Tues and kept it wrapped around his shoulders.
When I dropped off more blankets on Tuesday, I was taken to see the
teacher. Outside the room was Trevor's desk, with a decorated box on
it so the kids could drop in notes to say good-bye to Trevor. The
desk was all abuzz with kids sliding notes and such into the box for
the entire 10 minutes we were there.
It was a difficult experience (tears and hugs for me from many
strangers). Mission (statement) accomplished.
Blessings - Pam Braden / Flushing Michigan
v I just wrote a letter to the national organization of Project Linus and also
want to send a special thank you for the beautiful blanket for my son,
Ronnie. He was admitted to Mercy Hospital a month ago with pneumonia. He
has Down syndrome, age 16 with mental age at about 2.
I cannot express what deep gratitude filled my heart when I was told the
blanket was for Ronnie! It now graces his bed and will remain a
keepsake always.
Thank you, again, so much for such care and thoughtfulness.
Diane S
v I would like to thank you so much for the additional blankets for out victims that we service in Surprise. All the children and adults alike always find comfort in holding something close in their time of need.
We appreciate you supporting the Surprise Police Department Victim Assistance Unit. All your hard work and dedication never goes unnoticed!
Linda MelendezProgram Coordinator/Victim Assistance UnitSurprise Police Department Now, more news. I just registered our chapter for Basha’s Thank you card donations. This means if you shop at Basha’s and use their Thank you card you can have a percentage of your shopping bill sent to our chapter. Just go to bashas.com and click on “Thank you card” at the top of the mast head. You will go to a page with a lot of writing but as you scroll down, you will see how to register your card number to our account. Give this a week or two as Basha’s doesn’t seem to have us entered as yet. Tucson Project Linus got $25.00 one quarter. That is 5 yards of fleece! I will be looking into the other grocery chains and found that we can apply for grants with Frys and Safeway. Is anyone trained or experienced in grant writing? I could use some pointers. Thank you to Jane Chapman, Eve Buck, Jim Martin, Austin and Melody Rone and Becky Ridley for manning our table at the county fair. We had a nice time, enjoyed talking about Project Linus and recruiting new volunteers. We weren’t set up to have children color squares but we did alright with the donations and interest of adults passing by.
Up coming events:
May- We will be partnering with Kohl’s in Surprise on Wednesday the 20th. Remember Kohls when you are shopping, they not only donate volunteer hours, but also $500 per 5 volunteers from one store! You cannot get better than that!
Another quilting basics class will be taught on May 9th at FSEC, our blanket bee site. Students need to bring their own sewing machine, cutting mat and ruler, pins, scissors, rotary cutter, seam gage and seam ripper. The cost is $20 for the fabric and the 6 hour class. I have room for 2 more people and if they positions are not filled by the 6th of May, I will allow people who have taken the class once already to take it again.
As always, our blanket bee is on the last Saturday of the month, this month it is May 30.
June- I will be at our annual Project Linus conference getting new ideas for all of us. Blanket bee should run as usual but if not I will send out an e-mail alert.
July-Plan for another Blanket Extravaganza the last Saturday in July. We will try to collect pledges from all our friends and family then make blankets for 12 hours straight. The pledge form will be attached to the newsletter which will reach you on-line or by snail mail. This money is used to pay for fabric, batting, fleece and all the other things it takes to make a chapter run.
August- Check your favorite quilting shop for Project Linus’ very own fabric. Designed for PL and produced by Avlyn, a company in our own fair state, this is the cutest, kid friendly fabric you will ever see. Check out the pictures on our National Website, www.projectlinus.org, you will fall in love.
Another big Kohls event. This one will have volunteers from three districts, including Tucson. We expect about 150-200 people so we are partnering with the Southeast and Tucson chapters. We will need 7-10 people to help so if you can make it on Sunday, August 9th at Phoenix Children’s Hospital we would love to have your help.
Retreat!!!!! We are planning a fun one with different booths and classes to thank all of you for your efforts toward our chapter.
A preview of Retreat Activities:
2 90-minute quilt classes, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Limit 8 people per class
Make your own placemat purse
A beading project
A paper crafting project
A fleece project
I would love to add something from venders outside of the craft and sewing arena so if you know any Pampered Chef, Avon or Mary Kay people, for example, I would love for them to contact me. Any other idea are welcome too.
For now, dear blanketeers, we will head back to work comforting those children who need us. Thank you, again, for all your efforts. You are the best of the best.
Hugs,
Kathy Atha, chapter coordinator
Phoenix West Valley Project Linus
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