Elementary school students comfort sick kids by creating blankets

Connor Daily knows the comfort of a good blanket and he and his Hawkins Elementary classmates are giving that comfort to sick kids.

“I still have the blanket my Mom and Grandma sewed for me when I was born,” the 8-year-old said. “I still love it so much – it’s blue with cuddly yarn.”

On Tuesday, June 5, he and 25 other Hawkins Elementary second grade students made blankets they hope will be cherished by hospitalized children through the Fleece & Thank You program.

The students made fleece-tie blankets, 32 in total, in the classroom of Christine Darkowski. The kits were brought by Bryce Goulah, chief director of operations for Fleece & Thank You.  

“These blankets will go to the next hospital pediatric unit that needs them,” said Goulah, a Howell resident. “We run a rapid response system – they let us know when they are low on blankets and we deliver.”

Since he and Nicholas Kristock co-founded Fleece & Thank You in 2015, nearly 40,000 blankets have been delivered to children in 33 U.S. hospitals, 22 of which are in Michigan. Each blanket is labeled with a code that allows a patient to see a video-taped message from the person who created it.

Schools and corporations help the nonprofit in its mission to help children cope with illness by hosting events like the one at Hawkins Elementary, where they finish making the fleece-tie blankets paid for through fundraising.

The Hawkins project was the culmination of this year’s social studies curriculum, which focused on understanding types of communities. Darkowski explains the year-end objective was for the students to use their knowledge to help their community.

Her class, as well as two additional Hawkins students, sold “bead snakes” and loom jewelry at lunchtime and received online donations from friends and family, raising more than $1,000. They directed $269 of those funds to “Blessings in a Backpack,” which provides food to children in need; and then used $776 to purchase 32 kits to provide blankets through Fleece & Thank You.

“This is a super cool way to end the school year,” Darkowski said Tuesday. “They are focused on giving to others. They are very excited.”

Darkowski used her phone to take video of the students reading messages to patients they may never meet in person, but who will have an option to reply and give thanks, and often do.

Kenzie Mann, 8, introduced herself as she smiled into the camera and said, “We made this blanket for you. I hope it makes you feel happy. I hope you like it and it makes you feel good. I hope that when you get it you will be happy and not scared in the hospital. Bye!”

Audrey Loiselle, 8, also hopes that the blankets will lessen the fears sick children have in the hospital.

“I think they will feel more welcome there with a blanket,” she said. “It makes me happy to help them.”

To learn more how you can help, visit www.fleeceandthankyou.org.

For stories about kindness check out more from Humankind.