A little boy in our area, Sam Bish, who was the same age as my “two peas”, passed away several years ago from pediatric cancer.  Cancer sucks enough as it is at any age but to strike a child – makes me weak in the knees and my heart ache.

I had the pleasure of meeting Cindy Bish, Sam’s Mom, through a mutual friend at church while Sam was fighting his fight.  It profoundly touched us all.  Cancer is something that has surrounded our family and still rocks us to this day.  When we get a chance to lift up someone else who is in the fight, it is a gift to us to be God’s hands at that time.

I’m asking today if you will help Cindy be God’s hands.  Since Sam’s passing, her family created The Sam Bish Foundation and they bless families going though pediatric cancer treatments at the hospital Sam was treated – Nationwide Children’s Hospital here in Columbus, OH.  They bring meals to families, gift bags to the kids, pajamas, pillow cases – you name it, almost weekly, Cindy and her crew are there supporting other families.  She is truly, a saint, and a bright light in an otherwise dark day.  She posted about her next project she’s organizing for Mother’s Day…she writes,

Our next meal we will be providing at Children’s is next month and at that time I hope to give mother’s day bags to the mom’s on H12 fighting cancer right alongside their child. Many of you said you would like to help with this project. Please message me through this page if you are able to make up some bags or donate items for the bags. Many of the items can be found in dollar bins at Target, Michael’s, ect… Here are items we have put in the bags in the past- journals, note cards, chapstick/lip gloss, pens, tissues, hand sanitizer/hand lotion, body lotion, book marks, $5.00 gift cards (Starbucks/Tim Hortons/Hospital gift cards). If any of you are willing to help us pick up some of these items we would appreciate knowing that as well so we have enough products for the bags. We are planning to make up 30 bags. Thanks so much for your support. These bags have always been a blessing to the mother’s that receive them.

Here’s where YOU come in!  Can you help by making some Patchwork Wristlets for these Moms?  They require very little fabric – in fact, you probably have enough in your scrap basket to pull one of these together.  They require less than an hour of work.  These pretty little wristlets are a great bag for Mom’s to put a put a few dollars in and run down to the cafeteria.  Hold some hand sanitizer and chapstick.  I think they would find a million uses for them while they are at the hospital.

Will you join me in making these for Sam’s foundation?  Cindy would like these items by April 20th so they can organize for their April 30th delivery date.  She needs 30 of these.  Anything over that amount, she will use in future gift bags the following months since they are weekly, meeting and helping families.

Will you make a wristlet?  If so, please comment here that you are committing to making a wristlet.  Tell me how many you will be making and sending.  To save time, you can mail them directly to Cindy at : The Sam Bish Foundation – Mother’s Day Project, P.O. Box 323, Reynoldsburg, Ohio 43068.  If you are local to Columbus and want to pass your bag off to me, let me know and I’ll get it to Cindy.  Let’s see how many of these we can make and then Cindy will have a great stash of these sweet little bags to share with Moms…and even with the kids.  I know she has a hard time finding the right things to share with the teenagers receiving treatment and I think these would be fabulous.  Anything above the 30 quantity she needs for Mother’s Day – she will put to great use with patients and their families.

Pass the word to your sewing friends and thanks so much for helping to be the hands of God.

xoxo