For some reason, it seems even more heartwarming when young people help other young people. Read this touching story of the emotional experience of a high school student from Abington, Pennsylvania:

Hi my name is Michal, I'm 18 years old and a senior at Abington High School in PA. Every year in school we have to do at least 15 hours of service for 10th and 11th grade and 20 in your senior year. A few of my close friends were doing Quilts for Kids in our juinor year, I was interested but a little afraid to join in.

At the beginning of this year I made a point to go to the meetings to find out all about it. Immediately after the meeting me and a friend that did it the year before went shopping for fabrics and got right to work, lucky for me I finished my first quilt ever, early in the year. Although it wasn't the best looking quilt I was very proud of it and still had time to make another.

Finishing my second quilt (which looked much better then the first) a few weeks before the deadline, it put a huge smile on my face when it came time to sew on the official 'Quilts for Kids' label. Today me and the other girls involved in the after school club took the field trip to St. Christopher's Hospital for Children. After taking a few pictures of the group and getting a little background of a few of the kids we might see, we split into two groups and started down the halls.

It was very hard to walk down the hall because me and some of the other girls are good friends with a young girl in our community that was diagnosed with a rare form of throat cancer found in younger kids, only a few months ago we were all happy to hear that the new catscan showed the cancer was gone... only to find out the a few days ago they found the cancer had just returned. Walking down the hall our friend is in our mind. Going from room to room watching kids and teenagers light up with the sight that someone that they don't even know cares enough to make them a quilt was something no one could even imagine.

When it came time for me to give a young girl no older then 13 a quilt, it was hard to hold back tears, I am not sure what she was diagnosed with but she sat crying in a ball covering her face afraid to be seen by anyone. Her father and a few friends were in the room and gladly thanked me for the quilt. The sight of her broke my heart, I wanted nothing more then to wrap my arms around her and tell her it will get better some day, but held myself back walking out the room with a "I hope you get better soon, I really do, I'll be praying for you."

I joined back up with my class. My second quilt was a completely different experience, a young boy around 2 jumped for joy and quickly wrapped himself up to soon snuggle down for a nap. This was one of the most touching experiences I've gone through in many years. Although I needed this project to graduate, it never really mattered about the grade, if I can make on child smile with something I made, give them some hope, a will to life, that's what matters in life. Even though I leave in a couple of month for the Air Force, over the summer I'll be making quilts still to donate to the organization through my school, it's a shame I cannot see the kids' faces but what matters is they know someone cares. I wanted to thank you and applaud you and your helpers for everything you're doing for millions of kids.

Always,

Michal, A New Quilter For Life

Janneke, a Quilts for Kids quilter, shared this inspiring story of a tragic loss that still resulted in one final act of kindness and beauty:

"This quilt has a special history. A woman from Pennsylvania named Sally made the colorful nine-patch blocks. Sally was a wife, mother, grandmother, and active community leader—very well known for her sense of humor and her love of life. Sally, unfortunately, passed away from cancer at the age of 57. She is missed tremendously by all who knew her. Sally’s simple, unfinished blocks were passed through the hands of several quilters and were finally adopted by a talented and generous woman named Kathy. Kathy created the exquisite embroidery center and completed the quilt with many hours of loving care. The quilt will now be provided to a child in need of comfort and healing. It is hoped that the quilt’s new owner will enjoy it’s comfort and beauty over many years of good health and happiness."