Hannah's Socks • warm feet, warm hearts

We have a new group to celebrate. Brian Goodman of the Western Avenue Family Center in south Toledo called Doris, saying that they provide assistance to about 150 people: 30 children, 60 women, and 60 men. He said the people that they help are destitute. They meet in a former Baptist church, and Wednesday evening is their prayer meeting. My sons Caleb, Connor, and I unknowingly entered during that weekly gathering with about 200 pairs of socks. We sat through the prayer requests, each one prayed for by Chris or Scott.

Then Penny introduced us to the people in attendance. I told them the Hannah's Socks story, and their welcoming response clearly showed their appreciation. As we walked toward the front door, one man stopped us to share an a cappella verse from the hymn "Where He Leads Me, I Will Follow."

Will you help us to spread the Hannah's Socks blessings? Under the "How You Can Help" section on the left side of this page, we have listed several ways in which you can join us in pursuing a country where no one lacks for something so basic as a warm pair of socks.

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Wow, this is some kind of day! Since the weather forced our schools to close, Doris assembled socks and hats for delivery to three Toledo shelters. I threw — no, not literally! — Hannah and Caleb in the van and headed out to visit YWCA, Family House, and Beach House. (See photo highlights on the Hannah's Socks Flickr page.)

Staff members at two of the shelters recognized Hannah from the "Bridges" TV show broadcast on 12/30/07. Also, several staffers had read today's Toledo Blade, which featured reporter JC Reindl's interview with Doris and me.

Thanks to the article in the February issue of Guideposts, we continue to get socks by mail multiple times each week. Additionally, two more local people called today, asking me where they could drop off new socks being donated. It's amazing!

Thank you for keeping up with Hannah's doings. If you don't get updates from us yet, please click on this link: Subscribe to The Latest News From Hannah's Socks by Email.

Good news, friends - it's arrived! The Guideposts magazine article about Hannah's Socks is in the current (Feb. 2008) issue on page 24, in the "Pass It On" section. Editor Rosie Schaap called last summer to tell us that she wanted to publish an article about Hannah's Socks, and we thank her for acting on her word - a good reminder for all of us to remember.

Thank you, Rosie and Guideposts. Please keep up the good work of inspiring others! You can go to www.guideposts.org for more information.

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Here we go again. I feel like I should be a broken record...but I have to give another shout-out to my man, Larome Myrick. We were at the Ohio NABCJ's Toledo affiliate meeting on 1/24/08. I had a Socks Box to give him, but Larome graciously asked me to give it to Donna Jordan, who works at the Toledo Correctional Institution. Warden Carl Anderson, also present at the meeting, gave permission for the box to be placed in the lobby of ToCI.  Read more »

Doris and I are blessed with more friends than we can count, and two of them stopped by last Sunday afternoon. The Pratts brought news and friendship during a pleasant visit. They also brought us two checks for Hannah's Socks - one for $100, and one for $200. We greatly appreciate both their friendship, and their donations to the Hannah's Socks cause! In fact, we recently gave away virtually all of our men's socks to various Toledo-area shelters. This $300 gift will help us replenish our sockpile - oops, I meant stockpile!  Read more »

Just like last year, Perrysburg Junior High collected socks for Hannah's Socks. I picked up 166 pair of socks from their box this week. Although we could not arrange for a live interview in their media center, as we did last year, we received primary support from two school employees. Counselor Annette Sipp, a member of the Perrysburg Exchange Club, placed the boxes in the school. Assistant Principal Robin Laird made regular announcements over the intercom, urging students and staff alike to bring in socks for the cause! Thanks are also due to Principal Patrick Calvin, who graciously allowed us to place the boxes. Way to go, PJHS! We are grateful to you for sharing generously with Hannah's Socks.

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As we bring 2007 to its close, I have two more "Thank You!'s" to post: one to the employees of J. Jill at Levis Commons, and the other to the Maumee Senior Center. Both locations accepted a Hannah's Socks Box, and received donations that I picked up this week. This shows the kind of partnership that is necessary for us to pursue growth in 2008.

If you helped Hannah's Socks in some way during 2007, we thank you. Donating new socks or undergarments, helping with our first annual picnic, or making a donation enabled us to bless homeless men; women injured by domestic violence; and children mired in situations beyond their control.
If you have not helped Hannah's Socks, please know that we cannot be as generous as we desire without help from people like you. Would you please click on the following link?

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Here, you can keep track of the latest Hannah's Socks news - and hopefully, be persuaded to lend a helping hand! Thank you so much, and Happy New Year!  Read more »

Our thanks go out to Diane Kearney, who arranged for Hannah and I to address the Beta chapter of Alpha Delta Kappa sorority last Wednesday. We met in the home of Connie Netter, and told the ladies the Hannah's Socks story. Almost all of them are retired teachers, and every one of them was enamored with the lesson of giving so well demonstrated by Hannah. They donated over 100 pairs of socks, and we are grateful!

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Today we'd like to thank MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers) for hosting us last Friday at Zoar Lutheran Church, one of the oldest congregations in the Toledo area. I took Hannah and her brother Caleb, and after a scrumptious dinner — pizza, tasty meatballs, salads, trail mix, and sweet desserts — the three of us gave a brief talk about Hannah's Socks. Caleb read part of last weeks' Toledo Free Press article, and Hannah helped me tell the Socks story. Afterward, we received 110 pair of socks collected by MOPS.

The night was full of surprises: A woman who works for a local retailer gave me a $25 gift card and a promise to link us with her daughter's Brownie troop for another collection of socks! We are overjoyed! Thanks go out to MOPS, our hosts at Zoar Lutheran, and everyone in attendance! (View photos of Hannah's Socks' visit with MOPS at Zoar Lutheran.)

What a great weekend it has been! In addition to our typical house of family fun, we got an unexpected phone call from Kristi Rose, Youth Director of Toledo's Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church. She brought us a box of socks, which we received with gratitude. It's marvelous to see that people are moved by Hannah's example, and how they act upon it. Way to go, Macedonia Missionary Baptist!

We also had more than 500 pair of socks delivered by St. Luke's Lutheran Church of Temperance, MI. They included plenty of men's underwear to distribute to guests of the homeless missions with whom we work. Not surprisingly, our St. Luke's friends came through!

Finally, this is a follow up about Toledo First Seventh-Day Adventist Church. Pastor Mike Fortune and Youth Pastor Nathan French filled our van with 3,153 pairs of socks! In addition, they left several packages in their bin to remind their congregation that they are continuing to collect on our behalf. Though RingFest 2007 is over, the compassion of Toledo First SDA continues to bless Hannah's Socks!

If you would like to help Hannah's Socks extend compassion to people who will benefit from it, please slide your cursor over to the "How You Can Help" section and click on a topic that interests you. We'll be happy to hear from you... Thanks so much!