Charity of the month: The Linus Project

Project Linus is a community effort to create handmade quilts for those in need, which has been growing around the world since the early years of the internet. It was founded in the US in the 1990s by Karen Loucks, who emailed her friends with pictures of the homemade blankets she made for her local Children’s Cancer Centre. As more and more people began to show interest and join in with the project, the group decided to organise themselves more officially. It was named Project Linus after the loveable security blanket owner from the Peanuts comic strip by Charles Schultz.

Lyn Anthill, who coordinates the UK branch of Project Linus, explained the long history of knitting blankets in times of need. “Boatloads of quilts were sent to the UK from Canada in World War II for those who had lost everything to the bombing raids. In the 50s I can remember my Girl Guide troop knitting hundreds of squares to be made into Red Cross blankets for the refugees who were fleeing Russia. In the 80s, when the horrors of the Romanian regime were discovered, there was a drive to make quilts for the orphans there. And so it goes on.”

Now, there are local chapters for the project found throughout the UK, which deliver around 2,000 quilts and blankets each month to those in need in their area. While many associate the project with babies and young children, blankets are also created for traumatised teenagers and women’s refuges. Just get in touch with your local coordiator to find out what size and design of blanket is most needed near you.

Go to projectlinusuk.org.uk to find the contact details for your nearest coordiator, as well as a colourful blanket pattern which requires no sewing up.