ABOUT PROJECT LINUS

Project Linus is a non-profit organization, dedicated to "Providing Security Through Blankets," for ill or traumatized children and teens. Inspired by a picture of a three-year-old cancer patient holding her security blanket, Project Linus was begun in 1995 by Karen Loucks. Nationally, Project Linus has donated more than 3,800,296 handmade blankets to help comfort children in need in hospitals, shelters, and hospices. Project Linus has 371 chapters in the United States. Project Linus was named after the adorable security blanket toting character from the Peanuts comic strip.

The Project Linus national website has a great listing of patterns for you to use.

LOCAL FAMILY GIVES BACK

The following is a wonderful story about "paying it forward".  Last December, a child was taken to a local hospital due to an illness.  Shortly after arriving, a Project Linus blanket was given to the child to fill a bright spot in the crib and to provide warmth and comfort in a scary place.  The child spent about 2 weeks in the PICU, which was scary for the child and the parents.  As the mom put it, "it helped to keep mom and dad's spirits up, and was such a nice, unexpected kindness in the scariest time of our lives". 

As the chapter coordinator, I receive many emails and phone calls from people asking how they can get involved.  When I received an email from this mom, asking if she could have a blanket making party, I was thrilled. 

The party was called "(bed)Spread a Little Cheer!" and it was decided that the family would set aside an afternoon on a Sunday at their house to tie blankets. "Mom" pre-cut the fleece (with some help from her stepmom) so that all the guests had to do was find a comfy spot and start tying.  About 15 friends and family came to the party and in 3 hours, there were 50 blankets completed!  Mom said that a good tip for others is "if you schedule a blanket party during a Packer game, you double the number of hands willing to help! (our Dads and brothers also pitched in)."  There was a fire in the fireplace for s'mores and other comfort food, so it really felt like a party. 

The family is hoping that this will be an event that people look forward to every year.  Now, a year later, the family is blessed to have a very happy child in their lives.

DONATIONS AND VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

Our chapter relies on volunteerism and donations.  Volunteers may donate time on their own by making blankets in their home or by coming to planned Make a Blanket Days.  Volunteers are also needed to help at Make a Blanket Days, label and inspect donated blankets, and help at delivering blankets to the organizations and hospitals. 

Donations may be handmade blankets, fabric, gift cards to fabric stores, monetary donations, or tools and equipment for sewing.  In addition to the costs of fabric to make close to 6,000 blankets each year, we have expenses such as postage, satin labels, which are required by our National Headquarters and placed on each and every blanket, paper hang tags and paper labels.  Any and all donations and time are greatly appreciated!   

ABOUT THE MADISON CHAPTER

Anne Urso coordinates the Madison Area Chapter. Over 39,715 blankets have been donated through the Madison Area Chapter to children in Wisconsin.  Our chapter tries to donate 500 blankets each month.  

An article appeared in the November 13, 1998 edition of The Capital Times about Project Linus. To quote Mary Kaminski, child life director at American Family Children's Hospital,

It's great to see the kids' faces when they pick out a blanket. These blankets give them comfort, a sense of worth, both physically and emotionally. Having them made by someone is a big factor. They realize the time it took. It's kind of like bringing someone who is ill homemade chicken soup instead of buying a can. It makes the parents feel that the kids are being cared for.

                                             
                                                                   Delivery Team August, 2010

MAKE A BLANKET DAYS  
 
Many schools, churches and other organizations sponsor a Make a Blanket Day.  The organization "budgets" for this and members purchase fabric to make into blankets on behalf of the organization.  Members from the Project Linus Chapter are happy to help with the event.  We suggest that making "no sew" fleece blankets is a great way to get many people involved, as there is no sewing, just cutting the fringe and tying the blankets. 

2012 MABD SCHEDULE

MANDRAKE RD CHURCH OF CHRIST -  Saturday, February 18, 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. - 4301 Mandrake Rd.  The church is sponsoring this make a blanket day and have plans to make no-sew single layer fleece blankets. 

GIRLS LOVE DIRT TUG OF WAR TEAM - Saturday, February 25, 2012, 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. - Brooklyn Elementary School, 204 Division Street
Brooklyn, WI 53521.  This is the second year for this event.  Shannon Davies and her tug of war team hosted this event last year and made over 100 no-sew fleece blankets.  They are hoping to top their number in 2012. 

BETHANY EVANGELICAL FREE CHURCH - Riverside St., Madison, WI, Saturday, April 14, 2012, 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m. - This is the second event for Bethany.  They will be making no sew fleece blankets once again this time. 

If your organization is interested in sponsoring a Make A Blanket Day, please contact Anne Urso at 608-850-6096 or e-mail: info@projectlinus-madison.org.        
 

FEATURES  

We never know when and how an opportunity may come our way, but recently Anne Urso received a phone call from a woman living in Milwaukee.  Her mother-in-law is a quilter, and like many of us, had been purchasing lovely fabric for many years.  The mother-in-law decided it was time to sort down fabric and decide what she wanted to keep and what she needed to part with.  After talking to her daughter-in-law, our chapter was selected to be the recipient of all this beautiful fabric.  The fabric will be used to make many quilts for the children in our area.  We are extremely grateful for this fabulous donation!  

EDGERTON AREA GIRL SCOUT TROOPS - On Saturday, January 14, 2012, a no-sew fleece blanket making day was held at the Central Lutheran Church in Edgerton, WI.  Coordinated by Jessica Whitmore, 6 Girl Scout Troops got involved to make 75 blankets for Project Linus.  The girls ranged in ages from 5 to 13 and were busy the moment they arrived.  Out of the 75 blankets that were made, 15 of the blankets will be delivered to Edgerton Hospital to be given to kids who are being cared for at the hospital.  The Edgerton troops that participated were troops 3341, 3247, 2807, 2809, and 3655, along with Madison troop 2368. What a wonderful start to 2012!  Thank you all for your support.

JEFFERSON MIDDLE SCHOOL FAMILY CONSUMER ED CLASSES - On Tuesday, December 6, 2011, two Jefferson Middle School, Family Consumer Science classes began working on no sew fleece blankets for Project Linus.   Teacher, Peggy Bauman headed up this project, teaching the students about Project Linus and giving them basic instructions on how to make the blankets.  Two volunteers from Project Linus came to assist and give a short presentation about our chapter.  In total, 39 single-layer, no-sew fleece blankets were made!

THE SEWCIAL LOUNGE On Wednesday, December 7, 2011 had their first community involvement project at the new shop at 1809 Monroe St.  Owner, Sara Myers and several others came and made 16 flannel NICU blankets for our chapter. We appreciate the time and involvement from Sara and friends!  We wish you success in your new business.

THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTER-DAY SAINTS - On Monday November 14, 2011, the University Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints got together to make blankets for Project Linus.  With a generous donation of polar fleece from the PolarTec Corp., the group worked on making fleece blankets with different types of embellishments on them.  This will be an ongoing project to complete all the blankets that have been cut so far.  When the project is complete, they will have made over 100 blankets!  Thank you for all of your help and donations.  (See photos below).

COVENANT PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH - On Sunday, November 13, 2011, members of Covenant met to make no sew fleece blankets.  Donna Monson coordinated this event with Connie Roden, a Project Linus volunteer.  A group of women from the church and Connie prepared blankets ahead of time so that church members could get started immediately.  In addition to the blankets prepared ahead of time, many members brought additional fleece.  Men, women and children were present at the event.  In a two hour period, 104 blankets were made.  This is the second year the church as made blankets for our chapter. 

BADGERLAND COUNCIL OF GIRL SCOUTS MABD - On Saturday, November 12, 2011 many troops met at Blackhawk Church off of Mineral Point Rd. to make no sew fleece blankets.  The troop leaders and the girls had purchased beautiful pieces of fleece to make the single layer blankets.  The girls and their parent arrived about 1:00 p.m. ready and willing to get started.  Project Linus had 6 volunteers come to help and get the blankets prepared for the scouts to tie.  It was a very busy session but a very productive one.  The troops made a total of 103 blankets during the 3 hour session.  What a wonderful way to work together and to help in our community!  Thank you for helping our chapter!

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN LAW SCHOOL 2011 INCOMING STUDENTS

Wednesday, August 31, 2011, Lowell Center, Madison, WI.  Project Linus volunteers were invited to participate in our largest Make A Blanket Day to date. 
A class of approximately 250 incoming law students marched into Lowell Center about 10:00 a.m. today ready to participate in a community outreach day.  The event began with keynote speakers from the University and a presentation from Anne Urso, Chapter Coordinator.  The group had lunch than began working on making no sew, single layer, fleece blankets and handmade cards. 

Working together in groups gave the students an opportunity to get to know each other in their assigned classroom study groups.  Many of the students came from out of state and had a chance to meet new friends and learn more about the great opportunities Madison has to offer.  At approximately 2:00 p.m., most of the blankets had been tied, labeled and bagged.  By the end of this event 296 blankets were completed! 

Kimberly Frank, Assistant Director of the Reunions, Alumni & Student Services Coordinator,  worked with Anne Urso for nearly three months preparing and planning for this huge event.  Kim was instrumental in locating a facility large enough for a group this size and close to campus.  She also found a great resource for fleece.  Many thanks to Vicky Coulter and UW Law School for their generous donation to purchase the fleece for this event.  Many other staff members assisted Kim with all of the other details to make day a memorable day for everyone.

The number of blankets made will certainly help our chapter meet our goal of 500 blankets in September.  We hope that many of our new friends and volunteers will continue to help us in the future.  We wish the best to the incoming law students for a very successful future!

                
         Photos - Courtesy of Nick Wilkes
 

MONONA HERITAGE APARTMENT KNITTING AND CROCHETING GROUP

Monday, August 29, 2011, I was invited to come to the Monona Heritage Apartment's knitting and crocheting group.  I gave a short presentation about Project Linus and gave a brief demonstration on how to make no sew fleece blankets.  The ladies were excited to see how easy it is to make these fleece blankets.  The group got busy tying some of the blankets I had brought along and had a chance to sit and visit with one another while working on such a worthwhile project.  The group tied 14 blankets in just a short time.  I appreciate the efforts made by Rosemary Urso to coordinate the demonstration and for donating fleece for our chapter.  Many of the ladies took some of the blankets back to their apartment to tie and some made donations to purchase more fleece.  We hope to see many more wonderful blankets from this talented group of ladies. 

Events such as these really help keep our chapter going.  When the community comes together for the common good of others, you  see the compassion we have for people we may never meet.  Through the thoughtful gestures made by these groups and many other organizations and individuals, our chapter is currently donating over 500 blankets per month.  Our thanks to all who participated and shared in touching the lives of others.

MAJOR CONTRIBUTORS - A special thank you to the following companies and individuals who helped support our chapter.
 

FISKARS, Madison, WI  - 2012 - Rotary blades, scissors and scissors sharpeners
Hancock Fabrics, Madison, WI - January, 2012 - large assortment of printed fleece and quilting fabric
J. Czerwinski, Milwaukee, WI - huge donation of quilting fabric
UW Law School - sponsor of our largest  MABD to date
Edgewood College's Circle K & Student Government Association - sponsor of a MABD
FISKARS, Madison, WI - 2011 (cutting tools)
OLFA, Indiana - 2011 (mats and cutting tools)
McFarland Lioness Club - 2011 (monetary donation)
June Tailor, Inc., Richfield, WI - 2011 (mats and templates)
Private Donors (monetary donation) - 2011
The Crisafi Family, Stoughton, WI - 2010 (sewing machine and sewing supplies)
Alliant Energy Corporation Foundation, Madison, WI - 2010 (monetary donation)
Jean Hensen (Jean's Quilts) and Shelia Acker, Waunakee, WI - 2010 (fabric, quilting and use of her shop)
Natasha Lange - Pay It Forward Recipient - 2010 (monetary donation)
       
BLANKETS

Blankets should be homemade of all-new washable materials (Do not use any recycled materials or wool.) in child or teen-friendly colors or prints. About 45” by 60” is our most needed blanket size, but blankets of many sizes are useful. Blankets should be at least 36" by 36" for infants, 45" by 45" and 45" by 60" for older kids, up to a maximum of about 54" by 72". Blankets may be knitted, crocheted, fleece or quilted. For fringed fleece blankets, it is best to start with a 1-1/2 yard length of 60-inch wide fleece. "Minky" fleece is not easy to work with, so please do not use this for no-sew fleece blankets.

If you would like to make blankets for Madison's Neonatal Intensive Care Units, please contact Anne by phone or email (see Contact Us section below) for instructions or click here for a .PDF version.

For more blanket-making tips, suggestions and ideas, click here.
For a printable list of helpful facts and drop-off information, click here.

Project Linus volunteers sew a satin Project Linus label on each blanket before it is given to a child.

For questions about the Madison Chapter of Project Linus, contact Anne at 608-850-6096 or
e-mail: info@projectlinus-madison.org
 

 Thank you for helping Project Linus help comfort kids!