Once in a while, anyone can use a hug. That’s the belief behind the 42 chapters of Project Linus Canada, one of which is in Cochrane.
Nissa Gaddis-Berwick brought it to Cochrane in 2019. A group of people called Blanketeers make blankets by hand, to give to children in crisis when they need a hug.
Gaddis-Berwick says the group distributes them through child welfare agencies and the Sweetgrass Health Centre. It will soon be working with the Ininew Friendship Centre, too.
“The elders when they go out and speak to the teens who are having a rough go,” she says, “then they can bring along a blanket so they can have a hug from the community to let them know they’re not alone.
There are 14 Blanketeers right now. Gaddis-Berwick says others donate a lot of yarn.
“The only rule is that the blanket has to be new handmade. So all the material has to be new and they need to make it on their own, they can’t purchase one.”
You can get more information from our interview right here.
