Change is good. Holy Needles has experienced vast growth recently, and everyone is focused on creating items to donate to those in need. Holy Needles' founder moved last year and left the group in the hands of a committee of wonderful woman, who have been doing a fabulous job, keeping Holy Needles in action.
Holy Needles is in the process of updating this blog. Meanwhile, enjoy the many patterns and tidbits of helpful information that are within this blog, and look forward to growth in the near future.
Showing posts with label tucson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label tucson. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Holy Needles Teen Chemo Blanket Recipient Goes to Prom
At this time last year, Destiny Hessel had just finished what she hoped would be her last round of chemotherapy for bone cancer.
She had wanted to attend the annual Dream Night Prom for children with cancer, "but she was feeling rough," her mother, Sandy Hessel, said.
One year later, with her cancer in remission, Destiny, 14, is going to the prom - and this year, in addition to attending, she helped to plan it.
"When I went to the first meeting, we were trying to figure out a theme for the prom, and I gave the idea for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory," Destiny said. "In previous years they had secret agents and Alice in Wonderland, so I was trying to think of some stuff you could do for it - Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory decorations and stuff."
Saturday afternoon, Destiny went to a salon to have her hair done. Then she donned a gauzy, floor-length, navy blue gown and headed for the Amethyst Room at the Pima Community College Downtown Campus for the prom, put on by the Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Southern Arizona.
This is the eighth year the Candlelighters have organized the event for teens diagnosed with cancer. It is especially meaningful to teens and their families because a cancer diagnosis can cause challenges that make a normal social life difficult. Treatments can cause hair loss, weight changes and other physical challenges. Long hospital stays can disrupt usual social activities, and important milestones are often missed.
Last year was tough for Destiny and her family, but this year they were ready for some fun. They made the prom a family affair - Sandy and Brian Hessel volunteered at the event while their daughter dined and danced.
The first Dream Night Prom, in 2006, was the creation of teenager Carina Groves, who envisioned the event as a high school senior project. The 50 teens who attended found the prom to be both fun and healing, and encouraged the Candlelighters to make it an annual event.
Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Southern Arizona is a nonprofit, family-run support network that supports, serves and advocates for children with cancer, their families, longtime survivors, bereaved families, and the professionals who care for them. Candlelighters programs are always free to the families it serves, which now numbers 350.
The group gets its name from the Chinese proverb, "It is better to light one candle than to curse the darkness." Candlelighters was founded in Washington, D.C., in 1970, and the Tucson chapter started in 1985.
Cancer remains the No. 1 disease killer of America's children. More than 12,400 kids in the U.S. are diagnosed with cancer each year, including about 60 in Southern Arizona.
"When I went to the first meeting, we were trying to figure out a theme for the prom, and I gave the idea for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory."
Destiny Hessel, 14, cancer in remission - going to her prom
For more information about Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Southern AZ, visit www.candlelightersaz.org.
Contact reporter Kimberly Matas at kmatas@azstarnet.com or 573-4191.
http://azstarnet.com/news/local/teens-with-cancer-get-their-own-special-tucson-prom/article_305f833e-0094-5fed-b988-f3e54cf30840.html#.UYrE-nweAyg.facebook
Thursday, April 5, 2012
AZstarnet.com Article
http://azstarnet.com/news/local/northwest/group-gives-comfort-to-ill-needy/article_c4b2f44a-a959-54dd-b494-0294681a09d8.html
Group gives comfort to ill, needy
Arizona Daily Star | Posted: Thursday, April 5, 2012 12:00 am
Through the efforts of a local volunteer group, infants born into needy families as well as chemo patients and the homeless are getting covered.
Members of the organization, called Holy Needles, crochet and knit beanies, blankets and booties for impoverished newborns. They also supply snuggly stuff to ailing kids and adults who have no place to live.
And we're not talking just a few items. A few weeks ago Holy Needles distributed 1,294 items to Northwest Medical Center, Crisis Pregnancy Center, and to the nursery and pediatrics oncology department at University of Arizona Medical Center. That represents Holy Needles' largest single donation ever for its quarterly distribution.
"There seems to be an increase in the volume of people who are active - they seem to be desiring to do more," Donna Bishop, the group's founder and coordinator, said of volunteers.
Founded in March 2009, Holy Needles has donated more than 8,700 homemade items, mostly to newborns, in the Tucson area.
Bishop, who says she puts in around 60 hours a month volunteering for the group, began Holy Needles after she picked up crocheting.
"It really started eating at me that I needed to start a group to find out what to make for the community … there was an enormous need to make baby items and it just made sense that this group was going to focus on newborns," she said.
Bishop, 56, used her network from Casas Church on North La Cholla Boulevard to get more people to join her ranks and get startup money and supplies such as yarn and fleece.
The group has grown from eight original members to around 50 current members, said group member Pam Halbert. She attributes a lot of the group's success to its bimonthly meetings at Casas Church.
"The meetings are just busy. People bring in items and supplies and they sit and work," Halbert said. "It's a fun time to share ideas and all are crafty ladies with a lot of chatter and high energy."
The large amount of items Holy Needles makes requires lots of supplies. The group receives materials through donations, often after posting ads on Craigslist or after people visit the Holy Needles Facebook page.
"We're always looking for donations with supplies such as yarn. Our ladies are very busy and we have very limited supplies," Halbert said.
In early 2010, Holy Needles received a donation of 750 yards of high-quality black fleece from Polartec. So the group expanded its efforts to making blankets for the homeless as well as for chemo patients in oncology centers.
"When we get something like that, it just opens up the need to give our items to someone else," Bishop said.
Going forward, Holy Needles will continue to make items for newborns. Bishop is anticipating the possibility of moving away this summer, which will likely leave the group under the leadership of a committee with divided responsibilities. Bishop's absence will be felt across the organization.
"She's the primary leader and it wouldn't have been started without her. She's put in countless hours," said Holy Needles member Pat Thompson.
Despite Bishop's impending departure, her leadership has helped the group grow in size and diversity, with volunteers ranging from women in their early 20s to women in their 80s.
"We are just thrilled to be able to make a little something for these families so that they get a little bit of comfort," Bishop said.
For Thompson, getting recognition from the families makes her efforts worth it.
"Those notes from the little girls at the hospital make me cry," she said of thank-you notes she receives from children in the oncology ward or parents of newborns. "It's great to feel their gratefulness and surprise."
Find out more
Holy Needles meets from 1 to 4 p.m. the third Monday of each month and 9 a.m. to noon the last Saturday of each month in the Ocotillo building at Casas Church, 10801 N. La Cholla Blvd. Go to holyneedles.blogspot.com for more information.
John Kuells is a University of Arizona student who is an apprentice at the Star. Contact him at starapprentice@azstarnet.com or 573-4117.
Read more: http://azstarnet.com/news/local/northwest/group-gives-comfort-to-ill-needy/article_c4b2f44a-a959-54dd-b494-0294681a09d8.html#ixzz1rDVRmctQ
Group gives comfort to ill, needy
Arizona Daily Star | Posted: Thursday, April 5, 2012 12:00 am
Through the efforts of a local volunteer group, infants born into needy families as well as chemo patients and the homeless are getting covered.
Members of the organization, called Holy Needles, crochet and knit beanies, blankets and booties for impoverished newborns. They also supply snuggly stuff to ailing kids and adults who have no place to live.
And we're not talking just a few items. A few weeks ago Holy Needles distributed 1,294 items to Northwest Medical Center, Crisis Pregnancy Center, and to the nursery and pediatrics oncology department at University of Arizona Medical Center. That represents Holy Needles' largest single donation ever for its quarterly distribution.
"There seems to be an increase in the volume of people who are active - they seem to be desiring to do more," Donna Bishop, the group's founder and coordinator, said of volunteers.
Founded in March 2009, Holy Needles has donated more than 8,700 homemade items, mostly to newborns, in the Tucson area.
Bishop, who says she puts in around 60 hours a month volunteering for the group, began Holy Needles after she picked up crocheting.
"It really started eating at me that I needed to start a group to find out what to make for the community … there was an enormous need to make baby items and it just made sense that this group was going to focus on newborns," she said.
Bishop, 56, used her network from Casas Church on North La Cholla Boulevard to get more people to join her ranks and get startup money and supplies such as yarn and fleece.
The group has grown from eight original members to around 50 current members, said group member Pam Halbert. She attributes a lot of the group's success to its bimonthly meetings at Casas Church.
"The meetings are just busy. People bring in items and supplies and they sit and work," Halbert said. "It's a fun time to share ideas and all are crafty ladies with a lot of chatter and high energy."
The large amount of items Holy Needles makes requires lots of supplies. The group receives materials through donations, often after posting ads on Craigslist or after people visit the Holy Needles Facebook page.
"We're always looking for donations with supplies such as yarn. Our ladies are very busy and we have very limited supplies," Halbert said.
In early 2010, Holy Needles received a donation of 750 yards of high-quality black fleece from Polartec. So the group expanded its efforts to making blankets for the homeless as well as for chemo patients in oncology centers.
"When we get something like that, it just opens up the need to give our items to someone else," Bishop said.
Going forward, Holy Needles will continue to make items for newborns. Bishop is anticipating the possibility of moving away this summer, which will likely leave the group under the leadership of a committee with divided responsibilities. Bishop's absence will be felt across the organization.
"She's the primary leader and it wouldn't have been started without her. She's put in countless hours," said Holy Needles member Pat Thompson.
Despite Bishop's impending departure, her leadership has helped the group grow in size and diversity, with volunteers ranging from women in their early 20s to women in their 80s.
"We are just thrilled to be able to make a little something for these families so that they get a little bit of comfort," Bishop said.
For Thompson, getting recognition from the families makes her efforts worth it.
"Those notes from the little girls at the hospital make me cry," she said of thank-you notes she receives from children in the oncology ward or parents of newborns. "It's great to feel their gratefulness and surprise."
Find out more
Holy Needles meets from 1 to 4 p.m. the third Monday of each month and 9 a.m. to noon the last Saturday of each month in the Ocotillo building at Casas Church, 10801 N. La Cholla Blvd. Go to holyneedles.blogspot.com for more information.
John Kuells is a University of Arizona student who is an apprentice at the Star. Contact him at starapprentice@azstarnet.com or 573-4117.
PHOTO COURTESY OF SANDY HESSEL
Destiny Hessel, 13, stays warm with her Holy Needles blanket. Destiny has cancer. On March 29, mom Sandy Hessel said, "Tomorrow could possibly be her very last round of chemo."Read more: http://azstarnet.com/news/local/northwest/group-gives-comfort-to-ill-needy/article_c4b2f44a-a959-54dd-b494-0294681a09d8.html#ixzz1rDVRmctQ
Holy Needles Article in Tucson Newspaper
Here's a link to the article about Holy Needles in the Northwest section of Arizona Daily Star...
http://azstarnet.com/news/local/northwest/group-gives-comfort-to-ill-needy/article_c4b2f44a-a959-54dd-b494-0294681a09d8.html
http://azstarnet.com/news/local/northwest/group-gives-comfort-to-ill-needy/article_c4b2f44a-a959-54dd-b494-0294681a09d8.html
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Quarterly Distribution of 1294 Items!
Holy Needles has now distributed 8744 items to people in need, since its inception in March 2009.
Today, 3/21, we distributed 1294 items to local hospitals (our largest delivery ever!).
To the U of A Medical Center nursery, we delievered 150 newborn beanies. Crisis Pregnancy Center received 238 items, consisting of 30 beanies, 30 blankets, and 178 sets of booties!
Northwest Medical Center is received a total of 826 items... 299 blankets, 424 beanies, and 103 booties.
We also delivered a special project of 80 blankets to the U of A Medical Center, for children who are receiving chemo treatments.
THANK YOU to all who have made this possible!
Be sure to keep up to date... "LIKE" Holy Needles on Facebook.
http://www.facebook.com/holyneedles
Today, 3/21, we distributed 1294 items to local hospitals (our largest delivery ever!).
To the U of A Medical Center nursery, we delievered 150 newborn beanies. Crisis Pregnancy Center received 238 items, consisting of 30 beanies, 30 blankets, and 178 sets of booties!
Northwest Medical Center is received a total of 826 items... 299 blankets, 424 beanies, and 103 booties.
We also delivered a special project of 80 blankets to the U of A Medical Center, for children who are receiving chemo treatments.
THANK YOU to all who have made this possible!
Be sure to keep up to date... "LIKE" Holy Needles on Facebook.
http://www.facebook.com/holyneedles
1294 Items Delivered to Tucson's Newborns & Children
1214 Beanies, blankets, and booties were delivered to local hospitals. 80 blankets were delivered to University of Arizona Health Center... for children who are receiving chemo treatments.
Delivery to Northwest Medical Center filled Kim's car!:
Loaded into the car with other deliveries... Kim, Terry, and Pat are packed in:
Hauling Newborn Items into Crisis Pregnancy Center:
Unloading Items for U of A Medical Center:
Amazing!!!
Delivery to Northwest Medical Center filled Kim's car!:
only a small sampling of the 826 items!
Pat, Terry, Kim, Donna
Joy is thrilled to receive all these newborn items!
There's no room to store all these items in the social workers' office space!
Loaded into the car with other deliveries... Kim, Terry, and Pat are packed in:
Hauling Newborn Items into Crisis Pregnancy Center:
238 items to CPC
Unloading Items for U of A Medical Center:
150 beanies to the nursery
80 blankets for children receiving chemo
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Happy Birthday, Holy Needles!
In March, 2009, Holy Needles was formed when 8 women came together and shared their talents and their creative desires. Some learned to crochet for the first time.
After 3 years, Holy Needles has created and distributed over 8000 items to those in need; especially newborn items.
Thank you, to everyone who has supported Holy Needles in so many ways. Many have been blessed by your generosity, and we are all grateful!
After 3 years, Holy Needles has created and distributed over 8000 items to those in need; especially newborn items.
Thank you, to everyone who has supported Holy Needles in so many ways. Many have been blessed by your generosity, and we are all grateful!
Happy Birthday, Holy Needles!
Thursday, February 2, 2012
HOLY NEEDLES Meets at Casas in NW Tucson!
…for YOU, to help others!
Our current Mission…
to prayerfully, generously create blankets, beanies,
and booties for needy children in our community,
and to meet other needs as resources allow.
Let the little children come to me… Matt 19:14
Holy Needles meets the 3rd Monday of each month, 1- 4pm and the Last Saturday of each month, 9am-Noon
in the Ocotillo bldg @ Casas 10801 N La Cholla Blvd, Tucson AZ 85742
and the Prayer Shawl group meets the third Thursday, 1-3pm, in Cholla room 101
Please come join us, to share your time, your talent, and yourself as we reach out to those who desperately need what we can create and give.
Come with your needles &/or hooks…to crochet, knit, sew, quilt, or with your scissors, to cut or knot a yard of fleece! Bring your talent, bring your knowledge… don’t know how? We’ll teach you! Come relax and create.
Can’t join us? Create items from home and we’ll get them donated for you!
Donations of fleece, flannel, quilt batting, and soft yarn are welcome.
Cash donations are welcome… make your check out to “Casas Church - Holy Needles” with account 1-000-2759 on the memo line (tax deductible 501c3)
Further information is available via email holyneedles@gmail.com
"LIKE" us on Facebook www.facebook.com/holyneedles
#crochet #freeCrochetPatterns
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