THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 16, 2008
Blankets Offer Wounded Soldiers Hope
Volunteers at the Park Ridge Senior Center completed 54 blankets that will go to wounded soldiers from the war zones of Afghanistan and Iraq.
The Blankets of Hope are "given to returning wounded soldiers to show them we care about them," explained Park Ridge resident Barbara Ingolia. "They're in our thoughts and in our prayers."
Ingolia said the project is part of an organization called Soldiers' Angels. That organization supports several initiatives for the soldiers overseas with the Blankets of Hope specifically for those wounded in action. Many different organizations and individuals have volunteered to create the blankets. Ingolia read about the project and decided to help the effort from Park Ridge.
Somebody spoke to me, I believe in the higher power of God," she said. She introduced the idea to the center where she found support. "The whole senior center got behind it," she said. Several groups made donations to purchase material for the blankets and a 50/50 raffle at the center raised another $150.
"We had about 30 women who came," she said, describing the sessions. Some of the women appreciated that Ingolia selected a method that does not require sewing. "It's cut and tie; no sewing involved," she said.
In addition to creating the blankets, three women from the center wrote notes to the unknown soldiers expressing concern and respect. Ingolia explained that she felt soldiers returning from Vietnam never knew the appreciation of the American people. "These men and women deserve our care."
The blankets are being shipped to California from where they will go to evacuation hospitals in Afghanistan, Iraq, or Germany or to VA hospitals stateside. When soldiers arrive from the battlefield, they get a basic backpack of necessities and one of the handmade blankets. "Blankets of Hope provides warmth and comfort for the wounded soldier and the knowledge that somebody is thinking and praying for them at that very moment," Ingolia explained. "They open it and know that somebody thought enough of them to do this."
Of the 54 blankets in the shipment, Ingolia said she made three, and donated material for two more. She added that she feels it is important for senior citizens to stay active in current events. "We are still vital people and take an interest," she said.
She is not sure if the center will make more blankets or find another project to support. "We still have to decide if we're going to wait awhile and do this again or move on and do something else," she said.