Our current total is: 1875

While we have reached our stated goal of 1,299 blankets, we are continuing to collect handmade blankets and donate them to area hospitals.

The Mason Wasz Foundation continues to honor Mason by starting the 1299 Project on the first anniversary of his passing. He was our “Little Helper,” so we want to do something to help others who are currently in the same situation as we were in 2017. A handmade blanket, made with love, was brought in for Mason at Lurie’s Children’s Hospital, and it meant the world to us. We want to return the favor. We, as a family, will be making blankets on February 1st this year and every year. Please consider making a blanket in honor and memory of sweet Mason. He will love you for it!

Mason was here for 1,299 days, blessing us, giggling, smiling, sharing, helping, and making people happy. How amazing it would be to, at some point, reach a goal of 1,299 blankets to help 1,299 sick children…one blanket for each day that Mason was here blessing our lives. Please ensure that all materials used to make the blankets are clean and new. Hospitals cannot accept blankets that smell of any kind of contaminants due to the danger that they could pose to the patients. We don’t want any hard work getting discarded and not used.

Kids come in all sizes, so the blankets can too. The smallest size should be 40” x 60“, which is crib size. Anything up to a twin size for the older kids would also be awesome. Any help you can give us with this project is greatly appreciated. We know Mason will be smiling down, happy, and proud of us all.

If you have direct contact with us personally, we certainly can take the blanket for you upon completion. If you don’t see us but are in the Crystal Lake area, Material Girl at 21 North Williams Street in downtown Crystal Lake has offered to be a drop-off location for us. If you are willing to make a blanket for us, but you aren’t sure exactly how to do it, we have attached a short YouTube video on how to make them. It’s quick and easy; hopefully, you will enjoy it. If you sew or crochet blankets, that will be fine too. Please think of Mason as you do and know that you are making a huge impact on families and kids that need help during a really tough time. Of course, we wish Mason was still with us, but the best thing we can do now is live our lives to honor him and do good things in his name to impact others as much as Mason has impacted us.

Thank you so much in advance for putting your hands and hearts to work on this project for us. We appreciate you, your hard work, and your dedication to helping others in memory of our little helper. Feel free to contact us directly if you have questions, and certainly contact the Mason Wasz Foundation for more information.

View the blanket tutorial video here.

These are just some of the amazing messages we have received from recipients’ families…

“We received one of Mason’s beautiful blankets for our daughter Sunny here at Centegra in Huntley after she suffered a febrile seizure. Thank you!”

K. Colucci via Facebook

“I wanted to stop by and show gratitude for the blanket you made for Centegra Huntley that my son received on Saturday night.

My son is 3, 4 in September and has battled with reactive airway disease since he was about 5 months old. In this past year, his respiratory issues have decreased in amount but have increased in severity. We have had 2 hospital stays in the last year for pneumonia. Both times, it came out of the blue with a minimal cough for the day or two prior.

On Saturday, we had to visit the ER for an asthma attack that happened in the middle of the night with scary low oxygen levels. The epinephrin that my son needed caused him to get cold, and a nurse quickly delivered one of the blankets made in Mason’s honor. The blanket truly comforted my son in a very scary time.

I am so sorry to read about your Mason, but know that he is living on in all of your hearts in all that you are doing for members of our community.

Thank you again for the blanket. It will be cherished.”

M. McClelland via Facebook

“I wanted to say thanks to you guys. My daughter recently visited the Centegra ER in McHenry because she fell and needed stitches. She was very scared and one of the nurses brought her one of your blankets and she loves it! Unicorns are her favorite.”

K. Hoover via Facebook

“Thank you sooooooo soooo much to Mason…my daughter who is 3 1/2 was so sick and did not want to go to the doctor. After being told she had a 102.3 fever, Influenza B and a Q-tip shoved down her mouth AND up her nose…the smile on her face when the nurse came in with the BEAUTIFUL blanket to snug up with melted my heart! Thank you so much…Mason will for ever be a little helper …he brought a smile to mine and my daughter’s face and is keeping her snuggled up while she is healing …god bless you all thank you.”

B. Bednarczyk via Facebook

Hello. I just wanted to say thank you so much for the beautiful blanket. I was just diagnosed with Stage 2 Breast Cancer. While getting an MRI at Gavers, a couple days after I received the news, they offered a blanket…the same blankets that one week earlier I looked at and thought, “I hope I am never offered one.” So just yesterday I posted a picture on my FB. The Llamas make me smile and it is so warm. Thank you.

Angela Ryan-Morrow

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Let’s build something together.