Friday, September 30, 2005

Thank you note

Just wanted to share with everyone a phone call I received this
morning. Our office has a customer service office in New Orleans.
The one CS rep (Kelly) that works in that office lives in Mandeville,
LA just north of the lake. Her home is a total loss and they have
been living in an RV park until they are able to move into a rental.
I had sent blankets for her two teenage daughters (16 & 13) a week or
so ago. She called me this morning to thank me for the blankets for
her girls. She said to extend their thanks to everyone at Project
Linus. The day the girls got their blankets was literally the first
time either girl had smiled since the hurricane hit. She said that
life is far from getting back to normal and they take it one day at a
time but the blankets have made a great impact on her girls. Thanks
to everyone for all they have done for the kids of Hurricane Katrina!

Annette Faerber
Southwest Illinois

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

INFO ON HURRICANE BLANKETS

We are in a holding pattern for blankets right now. We have had no new requests, but the second hurricane may bring in requests when people can get back in.

Thank you to all who have donated.

Saturday, September 24, 2005

Thank you notes received

This note arrived in my Linus mailbox today. While it is directed
specifically at my chapter, it really is a message for all of us and
a reminder of why we do what we do. The newspaper article to which
the author refers appeared in a local paper on Thursday and was
extremely well done.


How ironic is was for me today to have opened the Mountain Times and
found the article on the Linus Project. Just last week I was going
through my daughter's clothes, blankets, toys, etc. because we are in
the process of moving. I came across a blanket that brought many
tears to my eyes and sadness to my heart.

Two years ago on October 21, my then-17-month-old daughter was
severely bitten on the face by a second-hand dog we had gotten a few
months prior. The woman who gave us the dog stated that it was
friendly with other dogs/cats and was great with children. She had 5
of her own so I assumed(NEVER assume) I could believe her. However,
after a few months, I was proven wrong. My daughter was bitten soooo
badly and would have lost her left eye had the bite been another 1/2
inch down her face. We are all so fortunate because the scar alone
is certainly enough to live with every day and a constant reminder of
that awful night. I'll never forget racing her to the hospital
listening to the terrible, heart-wrenching screams and all of the
blood I couldn't help but glance at every minute of the way there.

After about 3 hours of surgery performed by Dr. Garth and careful
skin placement, my baby was taken to the children's unit of Watauga
Hospital. There the kind nurses consoled us and gave our Ella a
popsicle, some Tylenol, and something I will never forget: her very
own Linus Project quilt. The blanket was machine-pieced with
adorable pastel fabrics and absolutely perfect for her. Thanks
sooooo much to the kind people who donate to this wonderful cause.
Thank you even more to the beautiful hearts and hands that put them
together. Special people keep this world a special place.

It was a very devastating and traumatic time for our family, one I'll
never forget although I try to erase it every single day. I cannot
thank you enough and would love to be able to meet the quilter. But
you all know who you are and what you do for special children in need.

Thank you so kindly,
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, Iwant to thank of those that sent blankets to the request for
blankets for SW Louisiana.
I will be shutting down my computer in about an hour and am not sure
when I will be back online. We are expecting to get hit pretty hard by
Hurricane Rita. We are staying as of right now. I will check in as
soon as I get back to a computer. Please keep us in your thoughts and
prayers.

Thank you,
Nell Breuer
SW Louisiana Chapter
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------All of the Project Linus chapters throughout the country have been most generous with aiding the homeless and evacuees in Mississippi (as elsewhere). I have been overwhelmed with the blankets sent to Mississippi. Today in Jackson, MS a baby shower was held for pregnant women who have had to flee their homes and leave behind everything - or it was blown away. In several weeks they are going to have another baby shower on the coast for women who had to stay there but have lost everything. I took blankets for all babies - they were SO appreciative. (As a sidenote - this shower was hosted by Barbie Bassett, a meteorologist in Jackson, MS and a former Mrs. America.) I have delivered blankets in some devastated areas - nothing was left standing - and they are all so appreciative. I will be going to the coast this week-end to deliver more blankets. So a HUGE thank you from the evacuees in MS who have so graciously received your thoughts, prayers and love through your blankets.

Martha Carlson
Jackson, MS
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi - Katrina blankets are still pouring in and I was getting buried with
nowhere to send them. I have, in the past, sent blankets to My Stuff Bags
Foundation when I have extras. I checked their website
(www.mystuffbags.org) and they are not only putting together their
necessities bags for kids removed from abusive homes, but are now providing
bags for kids displaced from the hurricane. I think this is a good option
for blankets made especially for hurricane victims when our Project Linus
requests are filled! Janeen Holmes will send you FREE SHIPPING labels and
pick-up is from your house. She send the following email to be passed
along:
"Yes! We are working like crazy here to keep up with the needs of hurricane
victims...so many children! But we're so grateful to be able to offer the
comfort of My Stuff Bags, especially when they can have beautiful Project
Linus blankets in them! Thank you so much, Judy, the labels are on the way.
Please pass the word along to other coordinators if you can.
With much gratitude,
Janeen"
Email her with your name/address/phone number and number of mailing labels
you need and she'll send them to you. jholmes@mystuffbags.org
Judy Walter, Carroll County, MD

THIS IS PROJECT LINUS at work! Thank you to all the wonderful blanketeers in our area who have given so much this month.
Dolores

Thursday, September 22, 2005

9/22

We just wanted to give all of you an update on our hurricane relief efforts. We know many of you have been sharing the numbers and the stories with your blanketeers. Thank you for spreading the word.

We continue to be simply amazed at the wonderful group of chapter coordinators and volunteers we have! What a privilege and a pleasure it is for us to join hands as we try to do our small part in easing some of the trauma these children have experienced. The disaster is devastating but having a part in easing a tiny bit of their suffering has been heartwarming. Thank you all!

In the past 18 days we have arranged for the distribution of 20,239 Project Linus blankets!

I have a feeling the end is not yet in sight, with the new reports of Hurricane Rita. As always, we will wait until the local chapter coordinators let us know if they need National help. If there is a need, I will let you know via e-mail and wait for your reply, if you have extra blankets. Please fill your local needs first. Please do not promise that any blankets will go to hurricane victims simply because we just don't know how long we will be requesting blankets. We have told our chapters in the hurricane areas that we're here to help for as long as help is needed. It would be impossible for us to reach such a tremendous number of people without all of you and your volunteers. PLEASE pass along our heartfelt thanks to each one!

Thank you so much!
Mary and Carol


Mary C. Balagna
Project Linus National Vice-president
Central IL Chapter Coordinator

9/22`

More blankets needed

Everyday I think will be the last day for blanket requests and today we get two..one for 200 and one for 300. So we still need more blankets ....and with this new hurricane who knows what we will need? Keep them coming in and I will see that they go to the right people.

Wednesday, September 21, 2005

Some letters from the south re hurricane blankets

From Sandy Roof – PL Blanketeer volunteering at the Red Cross Processing
Center in Bearden:
The PL blankets that have gone out of the Supply Depot carried by the
children and their parents are being held by survivors showing much more hope then
when they first came through the doors of the Disaster Relief Center. I wish
all PL Blanketeers had the chance to see the return of hope that comes to the
individuals whose lives they have so profoundly touched ... each PL Blanketeer
is a stepping stone toward normalcy in lives that have been so brutally torn
apart.

Thanks again for your help and support to Project Linus of East Tennessee.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to begin by saying "Thank You" to all who have sent
blankets to me for the Hurricane Katrina Relief.

Life is returning to normal here in Mobile but I can't say the same
for MS and LA. My husband, Steve, works in MS and he comes home
everyday telling me about someone else that he has spoken with that
day who has lost everything. It is so sad because you want to do so
much for them.

I did receive an email a coupled of days ago from one of my
volunteers across the bay. She and her two daughters delivered some
blankets and I wanted to share part of the email with you in order
to let you know how much these blankets mean to these families.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
"I have donated 23 blankets to Eastern Shore Family Practice. They
have been giving them out to the sick children they are seeing from
LA and MS from the storm. The girls and I were there when one
mother of an 8 month old who was dehydrated and her 6 year old
daughter who was having asthma problems got their blankets. She was
crying and hugging my girls. They stayed during the storm in Bay
St. Louis and lost everything. The doctor's office was trying to
find some clothes for them. The mother was hugging the blanket
herself, and she said they would make it "because of people like
you." I believe my girls learned a very valuable lesson from giving
out those two blankets."
Thank you again for your support and kindness,
Pam Pully
Mobile Chapter


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Just thought I would share this with you all.

Tuesday, September 20, 2005

OOOPS

205...not 105

LATEST FIGURES

105 of our fleece blankets have now gone to the hurricane relief.
National has sent out a total of 18,200.

Monday, September 19, 2005

9/19 New Requests

We have just had a request from National for more blankets, so we will be sending another 100 fleece blankets to Louisiana. That makes our total 191.....My goal was 200, so we are almost there.
You would not believe my living room with over 100 blankets piled high. Tomorrow we will package them and send them off.

A great big thank you goes to all the blanketeers that have made this possible.

Sunday, September 18, 2005

LATEST INFO 9/18/05

Our National Headquarters, in 12 days, has sent out 17,757 blankets from all over the United States. We, so far, have sent 92 blankets to the hurricane victims from our local chapter.
I am so proud of PROJECT LINUS.

If you want to help, check out our webpage at www.sjlinus.org

Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Totals

We sent 17 blankets last week and 75 blankets today..for a total of 92 blankets sent south to the evacuees. We will continue to send as long as the need is there.

These blankets go directly to the children and not to some warehouse or storage facility. This is Linus at work!!!

Tuesday, September 13, 2005

Latest figures on hurricane relief

As of 9/13 here are the figures for our hurrican relief:

National has been requested 13,507 blankets
Our chapters have sent 11.614 blankets
We still need 1,893 blankets

Total sent by all Linus chapters is 13,230 blankets already sent.

Wow!
We need single layer fleece blankets, knitted or crocheted light weight baby blankets 36"x36", and light weight quilts. Can you help us out?????

Thursday, September 08, 2005

Current update on hurricane reliew

Here are the very latest figures from National Headquarters.

Blankets requested: 10,143
Blankets Promised: 5,317
Blankets still needed: 4796

Requests are still pouring in for the relocated evacuees. Please help out by making a blanket...leightweight. same specifications.

Tuesday, September 06, 2005

More Blanket Action for Katrina Evacuees

National has received requests for 9944 blankets. Already promised by chapters: 4559 blankets. Still needed 5385 blankets. Those are the figures as of this afternoon, and more are coming in all the time.

The San Jose Chapter is sending off 17 tomorrow and many more promised every day, We will continue to send them out as fast as we fill a box and find who needs them. If you have blankets ready, check the hompage for drop off locations (scroll down) or leave a comment here and one of our volunteers will get in touch with you to tell you where to drop them off.

If anyone wants to donate money to pay for the postage of mailing blankets, we will take that also. Make your checks out to "Project Linus" and mail them care of:

Dolores Wright,
2274 Elkhorn Court
San José, CA
95125



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Sunday, September 04, 2005

More Hurricane Katrina Blanket Info

First, I wanted to let you know how the call for blankets for those affected by Katrina is happening. The great folks at National (http://www.projectlinus.org/) are asking local coordinators to only respond to specific requests (like "we need 50 blankets in X shelter or town). These requests are funneled to National and then the specific request is sent on to the chapter coordinators. This ensures that we make and send ONLY what is needed, and to not clog the logistical pipeline with uneeded goods.

Project Linus is ONLY responding with blankets. If you are trying to donate other goods, please contact your local Red Cross or other relief organizations.

Second, if you are reading this and do not live in the greater San Jose, California area, and want to make a blanket, go to the national page and seek the chapter nearest you. That coordinator can help you figures out what is being asked in your area.

Finally, if you are planning or are making fleece blankets as specified in the last post and you have not been in touch with one of our members personally, please post a comment here with your email address and someone will let you know how to get your blankets to us.

There are many, many kids who have nothing. Certainly nothing cuddly and comforting. We'll help change that.

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Saturday, September 03, 2005

Hurricane Katrina Call for Blankets

We are collecting fleece blankets to send to the South. National has already had requests for 9000 blankets. These must be fleece, one layer ....suggested size is 60x72 or 90" We can also use LIGHTWEIGHT baby blankets, knitted or crocheted. Nothing else... it is hot there!

Dolores

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