The Canoe City Quilters will hold their Project Linus Blanket Day this Saturday, March 5 from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. at the Old Town Elks Club, located at 290 Fourth Street.
Project Linus’ origins go back to Christmas Eve, 1995, when an article titled “Joy to the World” appeared in Parade Magazine. Part of the article featured a petite, downy haired child named Laura, who had been diagnosed with leukemia in 1993. After seeing the article, a Colorado woman decided to provide homemade security blankets to Denver’s Rocky Mountain Children’s Cancer Center, and Project Linus was born.
Today, Project Linus continues to grow, with people across the country making and donating blankets that are collected locally and distributed to children in hospitals, shelters, social service agencies, or anywhere little ones are in need.
The quilts are distributed randomly, but after last year’s local Project Linus event one ended up, by a rare and heart-warming coincidence, going back quite close to home, and its maker ended up knowing first hand the difference a blanket can make. Denise Sullivan was among those on hand; she had posted a photo of the quilt she made online. A couple months later, she received a text from a woman named Olivia Durkee, whose son had been ill and taken to EMMC for treatment.
Durkee had tracked down the quilt and asked Sullivan if she made it. Sullivan confirmed she did – and she also realized that Durkee was friends with her daughter. As Durkee noted in followup posts, it’s a small work indeed sometimes, one where a small gesture can make a huge difference.
“It is unreal how much one quilt can do (for) a child and a family,” wrote Durkee.
To participate in the Canoe City Quilters events, please bring a sewing machine, power strip, and sewing supplies. Fabric and batting will be available, but donations are always welcome. If you do not sew or quilt, you can still participate; organizers will be on hand to guide volunteers. Join for a couple hours, or bring a lunch and stay for the entire day!
For more information, contact Faye Johnson,, Penobscot County coordinator, at 852-1767 or mainelinus@yahoo.com or Kathy Ouellette at 852-7342.
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