NONPROFIT FLEECE & THANK YOU FORMS PARTNERSHIP WITH GLOBAL INTERPRETING SERVICES TO DELIVER COMPASSIONATE MESSAGES OF HOPE IN MANY LANGUAGES TO HOSPITALIZED CHILDREN

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. – In an effort to deliver messages of hope to non-English speaking children in hospitals, the nonprofit Fleece & Thank You (F&TY) today announced that it has partnered with Clinton Township-based interpretation agency Global Interpreting Services (GIS) to further its efforts.

F&TY provides comforting no-sew fleece blankets with recorded video messages of hope from blanket makers and delivers them to the more than 30,000 children receiving hospital treatments across Michigan annually.

GIS, the largest interpretation agency in Michigan, with more than 400 local and 6,000 national interpreters, are lending its services to F&TY by volunteering to record video messages for the hospitalized children. The GIS interpreters have made videos in dozens of languages, including Spanish, Arabic and American Sign Language, and will continue to add more. Currently, F&TY has 22 languages on file courtesy of GIS.

“We are grateful for Global Interpreting Services and its interpreters for helping us deliver compassionate messages of hope in many different languages to children in the hospital,” said Nicholas Kristock, co-founder and executive director, Fleece & Thank You. “We believe in the healing power of connection, but a blanket and a video message can only go so far if the message cannot be understood. Now, through this new partnership, we can ensure that every child receives the warmth and comfort when they need it most and truly understands they are not battling their illness alone.”

“We, and our professional language interpreters, are honored to help F&TY fulfill this need,” said Dawn Flanigan, president and owner of Global Interpreting Services. “A warm, colorful blanket and inspiring words can serve as a beacon of hope to children in the hospital, especially when those words are delivered in their language.”

About Fleece & Thank You
Established in 2015, Fleece & Thank You is a nonprofit organization that makes fleece blankets with encouraging video messages for children who have been hospitalized. For more information, visit FleeceAndThankYou.org.

About Global Interpreting Services
Global Interpreting Services has been a dedicated language service provider in southeastern Michigan for over two decades, and now provides that same excellent service nationwide. The company, which first began as Sign Language Services of Michigan in 1996, is led by Dawn Flanigan- an RID-certified Interpreter with four national certifications. After years of using that expertise to provide outstanding service to the Deaf community locally, the company expanded in 2013 and sought out to bring the same rigorous standards and high expectations of certified sign language interpreting to the foreign language sector of the market. The development of technology allowed for additional expansion and in 2015 they began offering both virtual video and over-the-phone interpreting, as well as on-site interpreting and document translation. Global has been and remains fiercely committed to both the consumer’s right to effective communication and the client’s right to outstanding customer service and meaningful support. Equipped with a dynamic office staff and a team of highly trained professional interpreters, Global is honored to facilitate understanding in our communities and provide a comprehensive team of support to their clients. For more information visit GlobalInterpretingServices.com.

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