What happened to the Knit and Crochet Corner blankets from State Conference?

When is a blanket not a blanket?
When it’s a hug, a comfort, or a memory.

You may have already heard the story of the 69 blankets created at our KEHA State Meeting at the Knit and Crochet Corner.  How Extension Homemakers from all over Kentucky created 7” x 9” blocks at home, and brought them to Louisville, then joined them together in a celebration of friendship and collective creativity.  How even more blankets were created with yarn and blocks that they took home from the meeting and were donated locally.  How all of our blankets were carefully washed, individually bagged, and labeled “Stitched for you with love by Kentucky Extension Homemakers Association – keha.org.”  And finally how Marlene McComas, Dottie Crouch, and Jenn Williams were joined by Amy Lynn and Michelle Lawson to present the blankets to Norton Children’s Hospital Medical Director Mark McDonald MD and Rev. Robin Hogle.  Two TV stations were there to film the event, which appeared on WLKY news that evening.

But then what happened?

Three adorable teenage aides happened to be volunteering that day.  After helping us transport and arrange the blankets for the photo, they were told that their afternoon would be spent delivering the blankets to children who were in the hospital.  Think of the joy and excitement of entering a sick child’s room to brighten it with a package of color and caring.  We can only imagine the comfort brought to all of those children that day.

Chaplain Robin Hogle shared a different story with us.  Sometimes she takes a few donations like ours to her office, to use at a later time.  At just the right moment, one of the blankets could be a hug, a comfort, or a memory to a patient or caregiver who could use the love on a challenging day.

The truth is, we’ll never know the journey of each blanket or where it is right now.  What we do know is that for one day, many in Norton Children’s Hospital were smiling because they received a gift of love stitched by Kentucky Extension Homemakers Association.

Please contact Jenn at jjennifer143@gmail.com  or 859-445-8840 if you would like to help with the 2020 Knit and Crochet Corner at the KEHA State Meeting in Owensboro.  We need volunteers to identify a local charity, help run the conference event, and coordinate delivery.  And if you would like to begin creating, we will receive 7” x 36” knit or crochet strips at the meeting on April 21-23, 2020.

Written by Jenn Williams, KEHA Publicity and Marketing Chairman

August 23, 2019