Last Thursday our chapter of Project Linus processed/bundled it’s 35,000th blanket.  A wonderful achievement that was appropriately celebrated.

An amazing group of women and men from Portland and Vancouver have worked hard to make, quilt, mend and label 17,500 quilts, 10,500 fleece blankets and 7,000 afghans since 2001.  You can see some of the quilts and hear some of the stories about blanket recipients at the chapter site.

This Project Linus chapter is the third one I have been involved in.  I started making Project Linus quilts in 1999, when my sister was a nurse at the local Children’s hospital.  At the time there was no Project Linus in Brisbane, Australia, so we set up a chapter.  At first there was just me and my quilts, but it slowly built, with the tireless effort of my sister,  to deliver to all the major hospitals in Brisbane.  Working with my sister to supply blankets I got to see and hear first hand how much my blankets were appreciated.

When I moved to Bristol England in 2001 I started making blankets for the local Project Linus Chapter in Bath, and also to for the Royal Bristol Children’s Hospital.  I was working for Aardman Animation, who had a strong connection with the Children’s hospital through the Wallace & Gromit foundation.   Again I got to see first hand how my quilts were impacting.

Now each month I bundle up my quilts, not quite knowing where they are headed.  They are made with love and sent off into the world where I hope they will bring some kind of comfort.  I can imagine it is hard for some people to spend so much time making a quilt – a mini work of art – and then ship it off, not knowing where it will end up and if it will be loved or cherished.  I am so lucky to have had such a personal connection to the process at the beginning of my Project Linus adventure.  Having seen first hand the impact a quilt can make I know all my time and effort will help someone, somewhere.