Hard-working volunteers carry on Project Linus work

MOSES LAKE - "My heart was thinking of you, my hands knew what to do..." begins the poem tied with yarn to the corner of a small blanket.

Folded neatly, it sits atop a stack of other blankets to be donated for Project Linus, a volunteer non-profit organization with a mission to make and donate blankets to children who are seriously ill or have been traumatized.

Working on a Saturday morning to add another quilt to the stack, Belinda Chambers, coordinator of the Ephrata chapter of Project Linus, begins cutting a piece of fabric into four squares, allowing her hands and imagination to take over the design in the moment.

Though she never plans for what a blanket will look like, she knows that each one she makes will bring comfort to a child in need.

"You know you're are doing something good, but yet you get so much out of it yourself," Chambers said.

Chambers explained how she and the other members of her chapter enjoy receiving emailed stories from donors about children who've received their blankets.

One story in particular was of a little boy being placed into foster care who was able to pick out a blanket by walking through the office cubicles as he left. Each cubicle had a blanket draped over it to choose from.

Once he had chosen one for himself, he then asked if he could walk back through the cubicles to pick out a girly one for his baby sister as well.

Chambers joined Project Linus in 2004, and became coordinator in 2008.

Though she had quilted some before, she explained how she's learned even more since joining.

"I've learned a lot from the other ladies on quilting," Chambers said.

As coordinator, her responsibilities include advertising for the chapter, helping with fundraising, and documenting every donation they receive.

She also helps to make sure everyone helping with the project has enough supplies, whether it be thread, batting or fabric.

"It keeps blankets coming in, I keep them happy," Chambers said.

Though she has never kept track of how many blankets she's personally made, she has kept tally of how many blankets her chapter has made each year. She said that each year they exceed the amount of blankets made the previous year.

Last year, her chapter produced 309 blankets, and Chambers hopes to surpass that number this year.

"I'm hoping to maybe hit over 400 this year," Chambers said.

With the increase of blankets made each year, the chapter has also been able to expand the amount of organizations they can provide blankets to. Currently, they donate blankets to seven different organizations and services spanning from Moses Lake to Okanogan.

The Ephrata chapter for Project Linus meets once every month except for December, for Make-A-Blanket Day, where anyone who would like to sew, or donate a blanket is welcome to come, with fabric and kits provided. Donations of fabric, thread and batting can also be dropped off.

As for future goals, Chambers hopes to see her chapter provide blankets to even more organizations and services so that they can continue to help local kids, and see their efforts spread to others.

She also hopes for more Project Linus chapters to start up within Eastern Washington counties.