Project Linus quilts
will comfort young patients
PRESQUE ISLE —Thanks to the generosity of area volunteer quilters and a local retailer, the anxiety that often comes with an inpatient stay at the hospital for children will be less than it might otherwise.
Contributed photo
PRESQUE ISLE MARDEN’S STORE fabric clerks, from left, Betty Foster, Debbie Cyr and Dawn McGrath, with store manager Doug Clifford, present 99 handmade quilts to nurses, from left, Pam Lilley, RN, manager of The Aroostook Medical Center’s women and children’s unit; and Carole Olore, RN, and Sandra MacCallum, RN, nurses in the unit. The quilts will be given to pediatric patients to help comfort them during their hospital stays.
Staff members from the Presque Isle Marden’s store recently delivered 99 hand-made quilts to The Aroostook Medical Center’s A.R. Gould Memorial Hospital. The blankets – made and donated by local quilters, including team members working in the fabric department at the local Marden’s will be given to pediatric patients who are admitted to the Presque Isle hospital for inpatient care.
The donation of the quilts to TAMC’s women and children’s unit is part of Project Linus, a national campaign that collects homemade blankets that are given to severely ill children from infancy to age 18. The organization has a strong base of support in Maine, and the central Aroostook chapter is one of seven in the state. There are more than 400 Project Linus chapters nationally.
“Marden’s has been involved with Project Linus for a number of years. It’s a cause we feel is very important,” said Doug Clifford, Presque Isle Marden’s store manager. “We are passionate about helping the children in our area have the most comfortable hospital stay possible.”
Project Linus’ goal is to provide love, a sense of security, warmth and comfort to children who are seriously ill, traumatized, or otherwise in need, through the gift of new handmade blankets and afghans, lovingly made by volunteer “blanketeers.”
Each year Marden’s statewide collects quilts, blankets and donations and distributes them to hospitals and other organizations that help care for ill children throughout Maine.
Several thousand blankets have been given since Marden’s initiated the effort over a decade ago.
One of those blankets locally was given to Tracy Whitten’s son Dawson when he was admitted at the local hospital.
“My son Dawson received a blanket after being admitted and treated for bronchiolitis,” said Whitten. “He still has his blanket.
“It was a kind gesture that was able to help him during a time when he wasn’t well and feeling scared. Sometimes it truly is the smallest of acts that can make a difference and help aid the healing process,” she added.
Having to spend any length of time in the hospital can be a rough time for anyone, but it is often the youngest patients who feel the most anxiety, as many are too young to understand why they are too ill to go home.
“Being able to give our inpatients a blanket provides them with a sense of comfort and security that they can keep with them throughout their stay and beyond,” said Pam Lilley, TAMC’s women and children’s health unit manager. “It brings a smile to their faces during a tough time in their lives.”
To find out more information about Project Linus donations, local chapters, or to connect with other “blanketeers” visit www.projectlinus.org.
