Lisa Nowak’s 9-year-old son, Levi, was having severe abdominal pain last fall, so she rushed him to a local hospital’s emergency department. It was a scary experience for their family, but especially for her little boy.
“His appendix was flaring up and he was getting poked and prodded,” recalled Lisa. “It was a very long, rough day for him.”
At one point, a nurse came into their room with a warm blanket and a toy. Both were gifts from donors.
“When we were leaving, we thought we needed to give the blanket and toy back, but we were told that it had been donated and was ours to keep. It meant a lot. In fact, he still sleeps with the blanket every night.”
Lisa’s family is large; her husband has 11 siblings. Each year, they take on a charitable project together. Inspired by the comforting gifts her son received at the hospital, Lisa and her family decided to make blankets and donate them for patients at emergency departments in their community, including Aurora Medical Center – Bay Area.
“We ended up making and donating 90 fleece blankets to several hospitals,” said Lisa. “It was a great way to get everyone involved. The kids were excited to help tie the blankets together, and they also got to experience what it feels like to give back.”
The mother of a child who came to the emergency department recently reached out to share what it was like to receive one of the blankets the Nowak family donated: “This act of kindness is what got my son and I through those first few terrifying hours. It gave me a sense of, ‘We’re going to be okay.’ Thank you so very much for all you do.”
The Nowak family’s donation inspired another gift of fleece blankets. A donor in Sheboygan recently gave 78 blankets to the hospital. Even though it’s not her local medical center, she still felt compelled to give where the need was greatest.
How you can help
Aurora Medical Center – Bay Area is in need of blankets throughout the year. If you’d like to donate blankets, please contact Jenna Robinson at jenna.robinson@aah.org. You may also want to make a monetary donation to a hospital or program in your community.