Cool Kids Fourth-grader leads quilt project for cancer patients
Ralph Waldo Emerson once stated that “none of us will ever accomplish anything excellent or commanding except when he listens to this whisper which is heard by him alone.”
The whisper heard by Ashley Hanson, a fourth-grade student at Riverside Elementary, came from yards and yards of fabric in a local quilting store. While accompanying her mother to Cottage Quilting in Newport, Wash., Ashley noticed a certain family of pink fabrics all grouped together. As it turns out, these fabrics are designed for use in items commemorating the cure for breast cancer. This started young Hanson to planning, and according to her mother, it is best to stand back and let it happen.
“The fabric just caught my eye,” Ashley Hanson said, “and I just wanted to do something.”
What Ashley chose to do was born out of days and weeks of planning and strategizing. She knew that she wanted to make a quilt of some from the fabric, but wasn’t sure if it would be something that would be raffled to raise money for one of the cancer foundations or for someone struggling with the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The Hanson family’s former babysitter, now a physical therapist working with cancer survivors, had some inspiring words for Hanson.
“I asked her if her patients would use a quilt, and she told me ‘When it’s time to donate a quilt, come see me,’ so I did,” recalls Hanson. “She told me that (her patients) would really appreciate them.”
The Hansons live on a hobby farm in the Chattaroy area, and are used to lots of hard work and creative ways of financing things. Ashley’s plan for purchasing fabric and quilting supplies was to hold a garage sale. And what a sale they had. The Hansons, along with many volunteers, raised over $400 in cash and gift cards to fabric stores.
Ashley and her mother contacted the Susan G. Komen Foundation and asked if it would like the money that was raised, or prefer a quilt to be made. The spokesperson for the foundation decided that a quilt would be the best use of the funds, so for Ashley, the decision was made, nearly.
While Ashley’s mom sews, Ashley does not. This is when inspiration struck once again. While contemplating the patients for which her former sitter cares, Ashley came up with the idea of lap quilts for them that they could keep and from which they could draw some encouragement.
With the garage sale proceeds in hand, Ashley and her mom returned to Cottage Quilting and struck up a deal with the owners. They agreed to sell Ashley and her mom the fabric at cost, and together, the Hansons decided to make kits that anyone could put together for the cancer patients.
“I’m very glad I started this project,” Ashley said. “It got way bigger than I thought it would, (but) I would encourage anyone to step up and help. My family has helped a lot. Mom has done tons to help. My brothers (ages 5 and 7) have been patient with this; fabric stores aren’t their favorites places to be. Even my dad thinks it’s a good project, just maybe a little bigger than we can handle.”
Once this project is complete, should that ever happen, Ashley plans on remaining involved in human rights issues. She would like to one day be a public speaker, taking her causes public and raising awareness about issues for which she has a passion. Her mother has definitely noticed a pattern in her daughter’s interests, and notes that Ashley’s favorite books are historical biographies about such influential figures as Abraham Lincoln, Helen Keller, Martin Luther King Jr. and Anne Frank.
When asked about advice for anyone wishing to get involved in a cause, Ashley said: “Keep up your dreams. Make a good and reasonable plan, and narrow down what you are going to do.”
Anyone wishing to participate in Ashley’s lap quilt project is encouraged to contact Roxanne Eneroth at Cottage Quilting in Newport. The kits are free and can be returned to the store for backing and quilting, or completed by the volunteer. For full details call Cottage Quilting at (509) 447-0208 or visit at 52 Wakefiled Road in Newport.