FAQs
General Questions
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A - Originally from Novi, MI, Fleece & Thank You’s headquarters are now in Farmington Hills, MI. We specialize in making fleece blankets with personal video messages and then deliver them to children in hospitals all around Michigan and Northern Ohio.
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A - Currently, there is an average of 30,000 children every year that face hospital treatments inside Michigan. Our goal is to make 30,000 blankets a year, to make sure every child gets the comfort they deserve!
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A - Our Executive Director, Nicholas, had a great relationship with a young child named Sophie, while he was playing professional soccer in Australia. He and Co-Founder, Bryce, realized that there was a need for creating smiles on the faces of those children fighting their battles, and then came up with the idea of a fleece blanket for all the Warriors to stay warm and lift their spirits.
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A - We were founded by two Oakland University students named Nicholas Kristock and Bryce Goulah in October of 2015.
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A - Make A Blanket Day is one of our largest annual events where communities come together to make a TON of blankets for children in hospitals! The blanket count at this event keeps growing and growing, and currently the record has been set at 2,017 blankets!
Questions about Blankets
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A - Each blanket has a logo/patch heat pressed on it, where there is a code that contains a video of the blanket maker offering words of encouragement to children going through their treatment journey. These children can then send a thank you video back with their new piece of colorful comfort. All of this is possible through our video sharing software called KindKatch.
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A - We have a warehouse in Farmington Hills, where volunteers put rolls of fleece (100 yards long) on a roller, the print on top and the solid on the bottom. We then roll the design and color out together, cutting the fabric into 2-yard blankets. After being cut, they are heat pressed with our unique patch and then they are folded up neatly into blanket kits, making them ready to be made at events.
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A - We consider blanket kits to be the product before the finished product. Blanket kits are just two pieces of fleece (print and solid) folded together without actually being tied yet. The finished blanket is cut with strips that line the outside of the blanket and then those strips are tied into double-knots. Then the blanket-maker will make their video and put their video code on the patch.
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A - You can certainly do so and we can make it happen! If you're local, you can pick up your kit(s) at our warehouse in Farmington Hills, or if you're farther away or out of state, we can ship you your kit(s) for a small additional cost!
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A - We accept any finished fleece-tie blankets at our blanket drop-off sites. We ask that all blankets be put in a plastic bag, and labeled with your name/group name on them for tracking purposes! Please check the details by clicking on the pin for site hours and protocols! For all drop-off site.
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A - Each kit is a $30 donation.
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A - We require that Fleece & Thank You blanket kits are used. We have worked with our hospital partners to design the exact specifications and process for our kits, and this is critical in delivering consistent comfort to kiddos. If you were not aware of our process and have already purchased materials, we do accept non-FTY blankets one-time only. These blankets need to be double-layered, double-knotted, blizzard/anti-pill fleece, and within the relative size of our F&TY blanket kit (2-yds x 2-yds). We do not accept non-fleece blankets, including crocheted, knitted, wool, or other types of material, and we do NOT accept used blankets.
Questions about Events
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A - This is when a group or team wants to make blankets + video messages on a specific date/time/location! Examples of groups that we work with are schools, student organizations, businesses, churches, sports teams, family parties, etc. Blanket-making events can either be led by a F&TY team member or that group can run it solo! For more details about our blanket-making events, view here!
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A - Our standard is that if your event is 30+ blankets and within reasonable driving distance, we'll have an Event Coordinator or F&TY Team Member bring blankets to you and facilitate that event from start to finish!
If your event is less than 30 blankets, we do our best to get to it! If we can't, we can help you schedule a blanket pick-up from our warehouse in Farmington Hills or we can ship them to you for an additional cost.
Questions about Volunteering
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A - A great way to get involved with us is volunteering in our warehouse where we prep our blanket kits! We have warehouse hours every Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday with various time slots to sign up for. In the warehouse you'd be cutting fleece, screen pressing patches, folding and packing blanket kits, and helping with our quality control process.
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A - Yes! Volunteers must be at least 10 years old. Volunteers between the ages of 10-13 must be accompanied by an adult. As much as we want ALL ages, this is with the safety of kiddos in mind!
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A - Other ways to get involved would be volunteering at blanket-events where you'll help groups of people make their blankets and you can sign up for these events right on our website! You could also help out with blanket deliveries/blanket drop-offs to hospitals in Michigan. If you'd like more information about the blanket deliveries, email us at: volunteer@fleeceandthankyou.org
Want more information?
Reach out to us with your question and we'll get back with you ASAP!