FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, June 7, 2022
Homeless Memorial Blanket Project
CONTACT
Scott McLarty, 202-878-2112, scott@memorialblanket.org
Blanket makers will gather in Naperville, Illinois on June 10 to create a blanket for a child experiencing homelessness, in association with the Homeless Memorial Blanket Project
• HEAR US: Giving Voice and Visibility to Homeless Children and Youth
“My Own Four Walls,” award-winning video produced by HEAR US
• Homeless Remembrance Blanket – Illinois: Facebook page with photos and article links
• People across the US with sewing, knitting, crocheting, and quilting skills are invited to join the project: Find a state at https://memorialblanket.org
WASHINGTON, DC — Blanket makers participating in the Homeless Memorial Blanket Project will come together to assemble a single complete blanket in one day at St. Timothy Lutheran Church in Naperville, a suburb of Chicago, on Friday, June 10 from 2 pm to 5 pm. The blanket will be given to a child without a home.
Members of the media are invited to drop by and interview participants. Those interested in doing so should contact Diane Nilan at (630) 267-5424 for access to the building. Ms. Nilan is president of HEAR US: Giving Voice and Visibility to Homeless Children and Youth.
St. Timothy Lutheran Church is located at 1313 N. Mill Street in Naperville, Illinois. Participants will be dedicating materials, time, and talent to raise awareness about homelessness.
Various civic and church groups involved in the project, which creates, compiles, and distributes blankets to people experiencing homelessness, have been gathering across the US to knit, crochet, and quilt together.
The Homeless Memorial Blanket Project is preparing a display of blankets to cover 9,000 square feet of the West Lawn of the US Capitol in Washington, DC on Dec. 21, 2022.
The project has participants in all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. The other most active states include Illinois, South Carolina, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Maine, Massachusetts, and Montana.
Volunteers in each state are being asked to make at least 100 blankets, providing ten for the Capitol Lawn display and donating another 90 or more to outreach programs in their area. Typical blankets dimensions are 35″ x 80″ and 60″ x 80″ with a variety of fabrics, fibers, and colors.
The Homeless Memorial Blanket Project is hosted by the Charles Bruce Foundation (https://
Anyone interested in participating in this project can sign up for their state at https://memorialblanket.org.
MORE INFORMATION
Press release: Illinoisans focus on school kids experiencing homelessness in the national effort to craft and contribute blankets for families without homes
May 23, 2022
Press release: Homeless Memorial Blanket Project, providing homemade blankets for individuals and families without homes, plans display on the West Lawn of the Capitol in DC on Dec. 21
March 16, 2022
Homeless Memorial Blanket Project on Facebook (national group)
To find a state Facebook group, type Homeless Remembrance Blanket and the state’s name in Search
Nonprofit Seeks Artisans Across US to Help the Unhoused
Daily Kos, February 6, 2022
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