WAUKESHA, Wis. -- Thanks to the women of the Quilting Club and Unravelers (knitting) Club at Ben Franklin Crafts in Oconomowoc, 75 children at Rogers Memorial Hospital will receive a soft fleece tie-blanket to hold during their therapy sessions. Terrie Seifert, assistant manager at Ben Franklin, received an overwhelming response from the women, collecting dozens of beautifully embellished blankets handmade with love and compassion for the youngest of patients at Rogers.
The blankets will be used in the four-to-five and five-to-six-year-old treatment groups at the Child and Adolescent Day Treatment program at Rogers.
Kristin Miles, PsyD, Attending Psychologist, explains, "Many of these children come from dangerous and scary environments. A soft blanket provides them with the sensory input they need to help them keep their emotions from getting out of control. At the end of treatment, they take the blanket home with them and it becomes a transitional object, reminding them of their experiences and the skills they learned at Rogers."
The blankets are being created as a part of Rogers Memorial Hospital Foundation's Angel Fund. The Angel Fund responds to personal needs of patients at Rogers and helps to make the treatment process more comfortable. Donations to the Angel Fund not only provide patients with items they really need, but they demonstrate to patients that people truly care about them and that they are not alone in their struggle.
The fleece tie-blankets are part of an ongoing project for both women's clubs at Ben Franklin.