Fleece Blankets for the Homeless

For her Organized Activity, Maddie hosted a ‘Fleece Tie-Blanket Event’ through the National Honors Society at Andover High School. When explaining the process of her Organized Activity, Maddie said, “When I first began to structure the event, I did not know it would become a part of my Experiments in Ethics, or centered around ethics at all. I am a member of my high school’s National Honor Society, and volunteered to run one of its committees last trimester with my friend, Sara. . . Eventually, we settled on the fleece tie-blankets, and I realized I could apply the work of my committee to my Organize an Activity assignment. ” Once the girls decided on their project, a few problems began arise. One obstacle was finding the means to fund their project and pay for the materials required. Regarding the solution, Maddie said, “We scored a great non-profit organization discount at Joann Fabrics, collected donations from the Society board, family members, and the places of our employment, and aligned our fabric shopping dates with fleece sales. Altogether, Sara and me were able to purchase enough fabric to make 23 tie-blankets.” Despite any problems that arose, the event was overall a success, bringing in the help of over 30 Society members. All 23 tie-blankets were donated to Family Promise, which Maddie described as, “a nomadic-like homeless shelter that moves from church to church within the local community”.

How exactly does this relate to ethics? When considering the meaning or ethical purpose of her project, Maddie shared, “Honestly, I did not enjoy this assignment. My event, making fleece tie-blankets, seemed highly unoriginal, overdone, even cliché. I felt like I was playacting at being generous. I only volunteered to chair a committee, because I was not required to complete ten committee hours for that trimester. . .  In my mind, I was not doing anything worthwhile for anyone. However, the purpose of this assignment was to open our minds to the possibility of making small changes, some of which may have unknown, yet momentous effects. While I may not believe my activity was worth the time, energy, and money spent on it, a homeless child who receives one of those tie-blankets might. And with that thought I realized the long, harsh road to ethical action may be very much worth my while.”

For more information, check out this e-portfolio!: https://sites.google.com/site/rootesexperimentsinethics/organize-an-activity