For nearly a year I have been communicating with blogging friends who are members of an organization called Soldiers Angels. Soldiers Angels is a non-profit group of volunteers all across the country to work on various teams and projects to bring comfort and provide aid to men and women in uniform (and their families) in the United States military. I wanted to be a part of something that in some small way gives back to our troops who sacrifice so much for us. From their 'About Us' page:

Our slogan, "May No Soldier Go Unloved," encapsulates the motivation behind Soldiers' Angels. By working together and sharing a common vision of service, the volunteers of Soldiers' Angels continue to demonstrate active care and concern for veterans, the wounded, deployed service members and their families.

This year they have team project called Blankets of Belief. This is an attempt for volunteers across the country to make a large number of blankets to send to our troops, particularly during the holidays when they are away from their families. The goal is 180,000 blankets!

We want them to know that they are remembered, that we are thinking of them during the winter Holiday Season, and that we are grateful for their service. Since we can't wrap our arms around them in person to show how much we love and appreciate them, our goal is to wrap all 180,000 of our deployed service members in blankets representative of our support and faith in them, Blankets of Belief. The Blankets will be a physical reminder that they are not alone during the Holidays. When deployed service members receive a Blanket of Belief, they will know that somebody back home remembered them, that somebody labored over a handmade blanket with thoughts of them and hopes or prayers for their strength and comfort.

I decided to make a couple of blankets - one for another team project called Blankets of Gratitude and one for the Blankets of Belief drive. That is when I discovered how low they were on donations. They have only received around 1,100 blankets for their holiday drive, when they need 180,000. Sadly, this is way below the mark. So, I decided this is a great opportunity to do a blog challenge and a blog giveaway.

So here is how it works.

First, set aside all your "I can't sew or do crafty things" reservations and put on your "can do" attitude. Remember this is for those in our military who always have a can do attitude for us. This project is easy and you have OPTIONS!

Option 1: If you can sew or quilt, here are the guidelines for your blanket. (Adobe Reader required to open) This document gives you the measurements, choices of fabric, patriotic colors and how to package and ship your blanket.

Option 2: If you can't sew, here is your project - a no-sew blanket. This is the option I chose and I created a blanket over the weekend for under $20. I'll be writing a separate post to show you photos of the blanket I made and some tips for saving on the materials and some helpful hints.

Option 3: If you knit or crochet, you can make a blanket for our veterans in the Blankets of Gratitude project. [Note: I'm making one of these as well and I will do a post at the end of the month to display the finished blanket. I found a pattern, in one of my crochet books, that looked masculine and I am using patriotic colors.]

Here are the prizes I'm giving away and the contest rules:

I'm giving away three (3) matching scarf/hat sets that I crocheted. And I'm giving away two (2) pairs of flip-flops that I decorated with yarn.









PRIZE #1: If you agree to make a blanket for the Blankets of Belief drive and email me (or link to) a photo of your completed item, I will post it and at the end of the month we will have a contest to vote for the best blanket. Whoever gets the most votes in three days, will win a scarf and hat set (pictured above).

PRIZE #2: The person who makes the most blankets for the Blankets of Belief and shows me a photo of them, will get a scarf and hat set PLUS a pair of the flip-flops.

PRIZE #3: The first person who makes a Blanket of Belief AND a Blanket of Gratitude and shows me photos will receive a scarf and hat set PLUS a pair of the flip-flops.

SURPRISE PRIZE: For all others who don't win one of the three prizes mentioned, I will have a drawing and the randomly selected winner will get a special prize which will be revealed in the beginning of November.

Wait. We have a deadline. November 1, 2008. That means this is a 30-day challenge. You have to commit to your project, complete it and let me know the results in order to qualify for the prizes by the end of October. And you can spread the word on your blogs to help out with this challenge. Tell your church groups. Tell your bunco friends. Tell your quilting/sewing club. We have to get approximately 179,000 blankets made by November 1st and Soldiers' Angels will never meet that goal unless you tell others and get them involved. If you have posted this on your blog, be sure to let me know so I can recognize each one of you in a separate post. I'll do as much free promotion as I can.

This should be fun and heart-warming at the same time. Thanks so much for helping me with this endeavor! After all, it's the least we can do for our men and women in uniform. Who's with me? Will you accept this special mission? Will you commit to the Blankets of Belief challenge?