A test run of warmth and care

Brittany Cartledge and Mary Fletcher are no strangers when it comes to cancer.

Cartledge has had multiple family members who suffered from cancer, including both of her grandparents, and recently lost a friend to colon cancer. This experience drove her desire to ease the burden, even if just by a small amount. She spoke about this with Fletcher, whose husband is currently being treated for two types of cancer, and they both came up with the same idea: blankets.

“They always talked about how they need something to keep them warm while undergoing treatments. So, we thought, ‘well, we’ve got sewing machines and fabric, let’s do something about this’,” said Cartledge.

Chemotherapy can damage nerves, and in turn lead to cold dysesthesia, or extreme sensitivity to cold. This can last beyond the treatment session, including several days after treatment. It is beneficial for patients that experience cold dysesthesia to bundle up on treatment days so that they combat the cold.

Both decided that it would be more meaningful to have ladies in their church work together on this project, so they held a sewing event for those in their church to join them. 30 women joined them for an evening of fellowship and sewing. Fletcher has a great deal of experience with sewing, so she and Cartledge worked together to teach others in the group.

“We had a lot of amateurs when it came to sewing, but we had so much fun,” Fletcher said. “It was like watching the kids at Christmas. When they got one row, sewed one, their faces just lit up and that meant a lot to me because I knew they were enjoying it.”

Together, their group was able to sew 20 blankets. Fletcher brought them in early April and distributed them to patients at the Outpatient Clinic on Laney Walker Blvd. Afterwards, Fletcher and Cartledge had many asking them when they would host another blanket day, which warmed both of their hearts.

“We originally did it as a test run, just to gauge how much interest, but it was so successful. I’m thrilled that this was such an enjoyable experience for them, and that they wanted to continue to provide this comfort for those in the cancer community,” said Cartledge.

They have not had a second meeting yet, as they are working on finding a venue space they are able to use, along with acquiring a few extra sewing machines so they can increase the time each person gets to sew as well as the number of blankets they can create.

“We want to do whatever we can to help out, and hopefully a warm hug from a blanket can provide the comfort they need,” said Fletcher.

If you would like to learn more about the work they are doing, or participate, please contact Cartledge at gill.brittanyr@gmail.com or Fletcher at fletchermary579@gmail.com