The Enid News and Eagle, Enid, OK

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  • Director Kim Winfield, along with children and staff at the Vance Youth Center, crochet and tag caps for cancer patients and survivors. (Photo by ASHLEY M.D. MURPHY)

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August 22, 2010

Vance kids knit caps for cancer patients

By Ashley M.D. Murphy 71st Force Support Squadron

ENID — A security blanket does not have to be a blanket at all. It does not have to be a gift received at birth, or even something you sleep with at night. A security blanket is merely something that gives its owner strength and confidence when needed, and has more worth than a number on a price tag.

In this essence, the Vance School-Age Program children are creating “security blankets” in the form of a knit cap.

More than 300 “cancer caps” have been hand-crocheted for local cancer patients and survivors by the children and staff in the school-age program here, and they don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.

“The soft cotton cancer caps provide comfort and cover for those who have gone through chemotherapy and lost their hair,” said Kim Winfield, School-Age Program coordinator, CSC Applied Technologies Inc. “But, more importantly they are a gift from the heart, letting others know that we are thinking about them, and care about their well-being. We take pride in making each cap, and hope the tradition continues as long as there is a need.”

Winfield got the idea of knitting the caps for cancer patients from her aunt, who is a part of Knots of Love, a national non-profit organization. She downloaded a pattern and brought it with her to the Youth Center as an activity for Vance children to try. The project was picked up by boys and girls alike, and now has caught on with staff and parents, too.

Since last December, Vance Youth Programs have donated more than 200 caps with help from Winfield’s aunt, Pat Scroggins, who sends one cap for every five the Vance children make.

“We have about another 100 caps to take down to Oklahoma City for a donation,” said Winfield. “This will be the first batch that has reached beyond Enid, and it feels great to watch this program quickly spread.”

In June of this year Master Sgt. Lori Shakleford, 71st Medical Group flight chief of aerospace and operational physiology, gave out 75 caps to cancer survivors at the Relay For Life run/walk in Enid.

“I heard comments about how nice they were. I also heard people say they couldn't believe that someone had put so much effort into their donation,” said Shakleford, who is the daughter of cancer survivor and former Vance contractor Larry McCarter. The run is about coming together to find a cure, while the caps are all about what makes patients comfortable in the meantime.

The caps are made from 100 percent cotton yarn and are completely knot-free. They come in various colors and patterns, and once finished are pinned with a tag that reads “together we can share our hearts by using our hands,” and signed by Vance Air Force Base School-Age Program.

The caps are a gift of support for its recipient, as well as an educational tool for its maker. With that purpose and soft texture, there may be no better definition of a security blanket.

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