Monday, January 28, 2013

February newsletter


January 28, 2013                 Blankets delivered:  10178    

Dear Blanketeers,
 Welcome to the new Blanketeers who have joined our chapter during the past month, we’re so glad to have you with us and hope you’ll love Project Linus as much as we do.   Be sure and let Kristin  or Millie know if you have any questions.

“Make a Blanket Day” for the north VALLEY WILL be Monday february 4th... come join us at Our Saviour’s Lutheran church 3900 S. 2500 E. From 10-2.   Bring your lunch – we have a wonderful time!!

The next South Valley “Make a Blanket Day” will be tuesday february 12th  at the South Jordan Library from 10:15 – 2:00.  sorry, no food at the library. please note due to conflicts at the library we are meeting the 2nd tuesday feb & march 12th& back to the 3rd tuesday in april 16th

BLANKETEER SPOTLIGHT


Blanketeer – Barbara Brae has a special motivation for making blankets – BABIES!  Barbara has a special love for babies, and makes a blanket for all the women she knows as their babies arrive.   She didn’t pick up the crochet hook until her daughter, Melissa, taught her how.  Since then she has been making extraordinary receiving blankets that are serious works of art and love.  Each blanket takes her about five hours to crochet.   Before she begins to crochet, she washes the flannel twice.   She is adamant that the finished product should be clean, and very soft.  High thread count is a must, so that it will be durable enough to hold up for hard use and many washings. Her blankets require 45”x 45”of fabric as well as a careful match of colors so that every blanket has a dominant design on one side and a subtle print on the other.  The edging is started with a machine wing-needle using carefully matched thread.  The amazing part is the delicate and artistic edges she crochets.  Her goals for them: “to be beautiful, but also utilitarian” and “to give even a moment of comfort to a child – and a parent.” 
  Thank you Barbara for sharing your time and talents with Project Linus.  We know you are a busy woman, as is a full time Executive Assistant at Centershift Software, as well as a mother of two daughters and grandmother of five boys and girls.

A note from Millie...  delivered 30 blankets to Fisher House in January.  They are so excited about our blankets!  Kay, social worker, told me that one couple got a curious George blanket and then added to the card that Curious George has sent it for their little one.  They put a Curious.George book with it also.  Another person used the blanket on the kids bed like a canopy or tent.  It is working out so well!

We want to extend a HUGE thank you to Melissa Thayer, for being our assistant coordinator this past year.  We have so appreciated her time & talents and getting to know her little boy Landon. We hope she will join us on occasion at a blanket day, but understand that life with a toddler is super busy!  Thank you Melissa for all that you have done to make our chapter run smoothly.  We will miss you dearly!

Thank you to everyone who contributes to Project Linus in Salt Lake County.  Whether you make blankets, sew labels on, package blankets, deliver blankets, donate funds for shipping and stamps, or donate paper, yarn or fabric, each one of you helps to grow our chapter so we may give a little bit of love and security to a child in crisis. 
Hugs to you all,
Kristin & Millie

email: slcprojectlinus@gmail.com
Kristin cell 801-386-5917

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Kol Ami day of service

We recently received some beautiful fleece blankets made by Kol Ami.  We so appreciate your donation & love the picture showing everyone working away!  Thank you...

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865571124/Congregation-Kol-Ami-holds-day-of-service-in-honor-of-Martin-Luther-King-Jr.html

Thursday, January 3, 2013

January 2013 newsletter


Jan 1, 2013                                           Blankets delivered: 10011

Dear Blanketeers,
Welcome to the new Blanketeers who have joined our chapter during the past month, we’re so glad to have you with us and hope you’ll love Project Linus as much as we do.   We have received some beautiful blankets this month as a results of friends & families coming together for Christmas service projects.  Such a great tradition & we appreciate each & every one.

I have exciting news!! We have delivered more than 10,000 blankets since the chapter was started!!  I love this milestone & such an amazing accomplishment!  I'm so happy & excited!  Thank you to each & every one of you who helped make this possible.  We are a very dedicated group & collectively we make a HUGE impact!  As our chapter enters its 7th year, we are very excited to keep moving forward to making a difference in the lives of children, who could use a little extra comfort in a trying time. 

“Make a Blanket Day” for the north VALLEY WILL be monday, jan 7 ... come join us at Our Saviour’s Lutheran church 3900 S. 2500 E. in holladay, From 10-2.   Bring your lunch – we have a wonderful time!!

The next South Valley “Make a Blanket Day” will be tuesday, jan 15 at the South Jordan Library from 10:15 – 2:00.  this monthly meeting may shift to every other month or quarterly.  if you have any input, please email us at: slcprojectlinus@gmail.com

In an effort to keep our blankets local, we need to let you all know that we are shifting our military project to benefit Fisher House.  Fisher House provides a place to stay for injured military personnel seeking treatment at the local VA  sometimes their familes are with them.  The blankets we make (not required to be military prints) are given to them to take back to their children or grandchildren as a gift of support during this time of  healing.  their emblem motto is:  "Helping Military Families".  Millie took a few blankets when she went to visit the facility & we received a thank you card:  "Thank you and the members of your chapter for the wonderful, wonderful blankets that you made for the Fisher House.  Our Guests and volunteers alike still comment on them.  The veteran and military family guests really appreciate being remembered."  Signed by "Friends of the Fisher House"  A  note is enclosed with each blanket that it is a gift for their children.

We know TAPS has been near & dear to many of you, but it wasn't until last year that it became evident that the blankets were not all being given to children & the time, effort and financial support required to ship the blankets was overwhelming.  We are excited that we can have an ongoing place to blankets to be delivered & not just a big push or crazy accumulation of blankets.   This will also save our chapter the costs of shipping blankets out of state & keep them all local.  If you have any additional ideas for donating to our military children, please let us know & we'll see what other options are available.

Pat & Myrna
Blanketeer spotlight!    Myrna Paxton and Pat McGraw – two friends, sometimes mistaken for sisters, who share a passion for Linus Blankets.  In the past year they have made more than 200 blankets for our chapter.   Their work is exceptional!  They are always careful to shop for the finest large pieces of fleece, and they use the softest of yarns.  They find the beautiful patterns by searching and ordering on line, or shopping carefully in the local fabric shops.  They crochet every day!  But, that’s not all these friends do.  Their grand children get a lot of attention and they always treat themselves to “sister time.”  They go to lunch, walk in the park, and bowl regularly.  Their enthusiasm for life and service is an inspiration.  Thank you Myrna and Pat!  
Just a note – we talk a lot about making fleece blankets but we dearly love crocheted and knitted blankets as well as quilts.  So where ever your talents lie we would love to receive your gifts of love.

Thank you to everyone who contributes to Project Linus in Salt Lake County.  Whether you make blankets, sew labels on, package blankets, donate funds for shipping and stamps, or donate paper, yarn or fabric, each one of you helps to grow our chapter so we may give a little bit of love and security to a child in crisis. 
Wishing you all the best in 2013!  We hope to see you soon!

Kristin, Millie & Melissa
slcprojectlinus@gmail.com
801-386-5917

North Valley blanket day & Christmas luncheon 2012

Bernie tried to hide behind the centerpiece







lunch & some blanket making too!





we can't let Kathy go far, so grateful she's still helping us make blankets!