September 2024 News

It is full steam ahead for Independence Hall in Philadelphia for the #memorialblanket!

Each year, behind the scenes, the Homeless Remembrance Blanket Project has to secure permits to display your glorious creations--the blankets you make to warm strangers and, in the process, bring much needed attention to the plights of the unhoused. Volunteers at #memorialblanket started applying for National Parks Service permits THREE years ago and this year our dream has come true. Just after our last newsletter went out we got the paperwork in the mail!

We share this info with you, not only to provide some perspective on the work that goes on behind the scenes of these displays, but also to remind you that without blankets, there is no display. Thankfully, you've never let us down! With fewer than four months left until the next blanket display (I know, right?), we're hoping you're helping us get the word out for much-needed hand-sewn, crocheted, or knitted blankets from no matter WHERE you live. If you need help getting those blankets to us, just click the button below and let us know. We'll work something out!

We've received our very first Homeless Remembrance Blanket Project submission from the land down under! Take a look at this beautiful Magic Blanket #162 "Kupua" - all the way from Australia. In the words of its creator, Kim Ryan, "I am an Aussie with the same passion as yourselves for making blankets for our rough sleepers (Kim’s Magic Blankets). Kapua is made from stash, unloved, and what-was-I-thinking yarn." If you look at the bottom of this newsletter, you will find a link to Kim’s Magic Blankets, and we've added Kim's organization to our ever-growing partner list. Please show your love to her and all of our wonderful partners.

Joining our overseas contribution is a lovely blanket sent to us from Bavaria earlier this year which will be a featured prominently in our blanket display. 

Back in our home state of Pennsylvania, Becca, one of our tireless volunteers, is creating 41 octagons and another 36 squares to join together--finishing a blanket donated when one of our regular blanket makers could not finish the one she'd started. We love the way the blanket makers of #memorialblanket all support each other and the community at large. The work you are all doing provides much-needed warmth to the unhoused each year, but more importantly, much-needed attention that demands real-world solutions.

Philly is on the cutting edge stemming from its history as the cradle of liberty. How fitting for us that the historical landmark recognizing another Philly first, the first known photograph taken in the United States, was a picture of Philadelphia's own Central High School. If you've been paying attention to our #memorialblanket posts, then you know that this year our theme is schoolchildren. We are excited to announce that, after a truly exciting conversation recently, we will be working closely this year with the Philadelphia School District's Education for Children and Youth Experiencing Homelessness (ECYEH) Region 1 team. They act as liaisons for children and youth experiencing homelessness and work to reduce and remove educational barriers for youth experiencing homelessness in district and charter schools in Philadelphia. ECYEH is a centralized office that provides support to schools, shelters, students, families, and the community.

If you are knitting, crocheting or quilting - thank you! We hope that, like us, you will be able to take great joy in knowing that your creations will be getting out to kids (and others) experiencing homelessness immediately following our display on December 21. 

The Downtown Carlisle Association has stepped up, AGAIN, to provide us with a drop-off point for all the Carlisle area blankets that we will be collecting for 2024. We can't show enough love or give them enough thanks. Mark your calendars; December 10 thru 20 is drawing upon us more quickly than you might realize. We'll be there for you to drop off your blankets at the Santa Suite in the Square very soon. Thank you all for always being there for us!