Cause of the Month

Hand/foot warmers for wounded soldiers

Landstuhl ICU, Germany cares for a large number of critically wounded soldiers before sending them back to the US. Patients’ extremities need covers for the flights back because of the cold. Several Angels, especially Sharon, Cynthia, Sara and MaryAnn, have worked hard to create patterns and instructions for sewing, knitting or crocheting the hand and foot coverings. To date, more than 60 individuals and groups, many of them not Angels, have made coverings for the critical patients.

Fleece mittens/boots are the best. They cover dressings and splints effectively. Make everything oversized so they can fit over big hands, casts, bandages and arterial lines. Knit caps are also useful. Make knitted/crocheted hand coverings 6” wide and 15” long and fleece ones 7” wide and 12” long. Knitted/crocheted foot coverings should be 8” wide and 18” long with fleece ones measuring 16” long, 6” wide and 12” tall (measurements are approximate).

If you or your organization would like to sew or knit these coverings for our wounded heroes, they can be shipped to:

21st TSC, Medical Transient Detachment
ATTN: Soldiers’ Angels
UNIT 23203
APO AE 09263

PLEASE email MaryAnn at maryann.phillips at gmail.com when items are shipped. Include a note with your name, email address and a short description of items sent in your package. Without this information, they cannot confirm the receipt of packages. You may wish to enclose a card or letter for the ICU staff. They have an incredibly tough job which they carry out with professionalism, dedication, and compassion.

For paper patterns for boots, please email Sharon at sharonbailiff at yahoo.com. You can also email MaryAnn or Sharon for more detailed information on making hand and foot coverings.