Credit Union Employees Make 40 Blankets for Moms in Need
January 9, 2014
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Appleton, WI - A small craft project started by a Community First CU teller blossomed into a "warm and fuzzy initiative" among her branch colleagues to benefit mothers in need.� Rachel Johnson, a teller with Appleton-based CFCU in Northeast Wisconsin, had planned to use her crafting skills to crochet blankets for Fox Valleys Mother & Unborn Baby Care, Inc., a Christ-centered, life-affirming ministry devoted to helping mothers and babies in need through medical assistance, education and emotional support.�Upon learning that fleece blankets were preferred, she invited co-workers in her downtown Appleton branch to participate.
"Im a crafter at heart so I wanted to be able to do something that would benefit others," Johnson said. "There is something special about receiving a blanket that someone took the time to make it's like receiving a hug from a stranger."
On Dec. 10, Johnson helped deliver 40 hand-made fleece blankets plus some knitted white booties to the crisis pregnancy center in Appleton that helps�mostly low-income women and families make a choice for life.�"Weve never gotten this many blankets at one time," said M.J.�Clements, MUBC executive director. "Its amazing the reaction when you give them these blankets. Theyre very touched it often brings tears to their eyes."
"Everyone in the branch participated, whether it was buying the material, financial support, attending a blanket-making party hosted by a co-worker, taking the blankets home to tie or washing night at the�laundromat in a special (allergen-free) detergent," said Becky Davis, Richmond branch manager.
"We were working for a good cause and having fun doing it," said head teller Lisa Mjos, whose aunt made nine infant size white booties given to women upon finding out they are pregnant. Clements said some women who received booties after a positive pregnancy test later said "they sleep with them under their pillows (hoping) for a healthy baby and some have hung them on their Christmas trees." Both the blankets and booties give the women a connection with their babies and comfort knowing "that were here to help them and there are people in the community that are willing to help them also," Clements said.
Johnson said the gifts represent "a nice little sign of hope, I guess. These women that go there, a lot of times theyre kind of scared. They dont exactly have another place to turn to and its really nice to be able to, I guess, celebrate a pregnancy that might otherwise be something thats difficult."
Community First Credit Union is a member-owned financial cooperative serving more than 106,000 member/owners in Northeastern Wisconsin. CFCU operates 20 full-service branches, eight non-traditional branches and has assets totaling over $1.98 billion.
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