Residents of The Palace Gardens in Homestead are putting their time and talents to good use and crocheting hats to help children in pediatric oncology departments across the county.
They are helping Virginia “Vicky” Saldivar who is the founder of “The Moises Project,” an organization she created when her grandson, Moises, was diagnosed with leukemia.
When Moises was undergoing chemotherapy, she saw other children who also had lost their hair and were cold. She decided to start crocheting fun cartoon character hats that would match characters found in children’s books. She would then donate the book and hat to the youngsters.
Saldivar wanted to donate items to children at different hospitals each month and needed to recruit volunteers who could crochet. The residents of The Palace Gardens fit the bill perfectly.
Coordinating with The Palace’s director of activities, Frank Dunbar, she showed the hats to the ladies and they were eager to help. Dunbar created a crochet workshop that meets every Saturday. Crafters of all skill levels are welcomed since teaching comes easy to Saldivar who is a teacher at the Charter Waterstone School in Homestead, and patiently works with these enthusiastic beginners.
“We have residents who will not participate in other activities, but are devoted to participating in the “Crocheting for Cancer” Saturday workshops,” Dunbar said.
Usually nine or 10 residents attend each workshop and they are committed to the project.
“It gives them purpose. It’s more meaningful than crocheting another blanket or scarf. The funny cartoon characters fashioned from the hats makes everyone smile,” Saldivar said.
While the residents crochet the main portion of a hat, she adds the finishing details. She brings the completed hats back to The Palace to show the residents what they helped create before they are donated.
Researchers are finding many benefits from crocheting, including alleviating symptoms of depression and helping improve motor functions.
There are neurological findings too. In a 2012 study, Yonas Geda, a Mayo Clinic professor of neurology and psychiatry, and colleagues studied the effects of activities including knitting, quilting and playing games in 1,321 seniors, nearly 200 of whom had mild cognitive impairment, an intermediate stage between normal aging and dementia. The researchers found that those who engaged in crafting, computer activities, playing games and reading books were 30-50 percent less likely to have mild cognitive impairment than those who did not.
For the Moises Project, The Palace Gardens donates yarn and crocheting supplies for residents and Saldivar receives book donations from across the country, recruited from social media and The Moises Project Facebook page.
Each month she packages at least 25 completed hats with corresponding books to send to hospitals throughout the United States. Because she is unable to visit each hospital personally, she recruits people from Facebook to make the donations on their behalf.
Project Moises donated hats and books locally to the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in Miami and Discoll Children’s Hospital in Corpus Christi, TX.
“Residents of The Palace Homestead are thrilled to be contributing to helping others and making the world a better place,” Dunbar added.
