MONTEGUT, La. (AP) — Janice Hamilton keeps a binder to keep track of the fleece blankets she’s sewn and distributed free of charge to individuals and families in need after Hurricane Ida.
She also uses the binder to keep track of the numerous donations and cards she has received in response to her project, Blankets for the Bayous.
“I keep every letter and I sit here sometimes and just read through them,” the 74-year-old Montegut resident said. She read a few out loud, all thanking her and offering encouragement.
Hamilton does the best she can to keep track of the donors’ names and what they donated, whether it be fleece, sewing supplies or money she can use to buy supplies, though sometimes the contributions are made anonymously. They include both local and out-of-state supporters, who have learned about her project through online articles and social media.
“I thank them all on my website (Facebook page). Eventually, when maybe this calms down in the summer or the spring, you know, I just want to get in touch with everybody that donated,” she said.
She has also started to reach out to people and families who received blankets earlier on in the project to see how they are doing.
“A lot of them have, since then, gone into campers and they’re doing good. And I said, ‘Well, if you ever need any more blankets, just let me know,’” she said.
Hamilton started Blankets for the Bayous in early October as a way to help people whose homes were severely damaged or lost to the Category 4 hurricane, which devastated Terrebonne, Lafourche and surrounding communities on Aug. 29. She has made blankets for children and adults, and, as of around Christmas, blankets for dogs per request.
Hamilton and her husband, Mark, spend about five to six days a week sewing together fleece blankets. Mark will pin the fleece fabric together, she sews around the border, he turns it inside out, and then she sews a top stitch around the edge to give it a more finished look.
As of Feb. 11, more than 1,030 blankets have been distributed to people in need across south Louisiana. She has stitched together many of the blankets herself, but several included in the total were sent to her already sewn by donors.
People who have become familiar with the sewing project have referred to her in public as “The Blanket Lady” and her husband “The Blanket Man.”
She said she will continue to make blankets as long as people continue to request them.
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