The CF Rainbow Tree is back! Once again this year we’re onto another donation adventure and I’m in need of polymer clay Christmas ornament donations. Are you willing to help? I’m calling on you; That’s right you. I’m calling on all clayers worldwide! I need your help decorating a Christmas tree for Cystic Fibrosis patients again this year. And this year we’re doing more, growing bigger, and are in need of many more ornaments! Are you willing to help me? Please see the information below for details on making your clay Christmas ornament donation.
This is Important to Me, Because I Have Cystic Fibrosis
Every once and awhile here on the blog I take a moment (just a quick one mind you) to write about my life story and living with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). I took my longest hiatus [almost four months to be exact] from polymer clay in 2011 when I had half of my lung removed as a direct result of my CF. If you’re sitting here wondering what CF is, your best explanation is to visit our foundation website.
With anywhere from 2 to 4 hospitalizations a year, my hospital is at times almost like a second home. Three years ago I even got to spend Christmas there … well a portion of it, being released the day before Christmas. Being in the hospital is bad enough, being there over Christmas is far worse. Last year’s Christmas Trees were a big success and we’ve been invited to decorate several more for multiple places again this year for the CF patients.
Passion for Polymer Magazine – July 2019 Edition
Did you see the July 2019 issue of Passion for Polymer magazine? How blessed I was to not only have an entire article dedicated to this project, but also have a tutorial placed in the magazine showing each of you how to make one of my favorite simple, silly, & fun Christmas ornaments. If you aren’t subscribed to the magazine, you can get your copy here.
CF Rainbow Tree – Clay Christmas Ornament Donation
What to Make: Make as many ornaments as you would like to help me decorate our tree. The trees we are decorating vary in size from a six foot tall tree to several four foot trees and we need ornaments.
If you don’t know what to make, choose either Christmas themed ornaments or purple and red ornaments. Why purple and red? Every disease has a ribbon, ours is purple with a red rose in the middle. Why? Because CF is all about “65 Roses”. Read all about 65 Roses here.
When Are They Due: The ornaments need to be in the mail to me by November 14th, 2019. Feel free to mail them sooner if you would like.
I am coordinating the decorating of the tree with the hospital staff and need to have the ornaments when they are ready to decorate. This ship date will allow me to receive all the ornaments from across the US and abroad.
Mail ornaments to: KatersAcres, PO Box 296, Newton Falls, OH 44444
What Else Can I Do: Contribute to the small gift & food fund to stock the pantry for CF adult inpatients. Please contact Katie to find out how to contribute.
Use #CFRainbowTree across social media.
Other Information & FAQs:
What Will Be Done with the Ornaments? The ornaments will be used to decorate trees in the inpatient CF center. Additional ornaments will be taken to the CF clinic to decorate the tree there. For every inpatient that comes through the doors to stay a few days, a week, two weeks, or any duration they will be allowed to choose any ornament to take off the tree and take home with them. Your heartfelt ornament will be a token of love they can treasure, even during a difficult hospital stay. After Christmas, nurses, doctors, respiratory & physical therapists, and other staff who treat patients with Cystic Fibrosis and have dedicated their lives to their care, will also be allowed to choose an ornament to take home from the remaining ornaments on the Christmas tree.
May I Send a Card with My Ornament? You may absolutely send a card with your ornament. If you send a card with your ornament, be sure to attach your ornament to your card in some way so the two remain together.
Will I Get to See the Finished Tree? YES! After Mr. Katie (my hubby) and I decorate the tree with the help of my decorating crew [shown in photo at right], we will absolutely share photos (and hopefully some video) of the process with the polymer community. Look for that around December 2019.
From the bottom of my heart, from all of us in the CF community who battle CF on a daily basis, we thank you for your time, energy, & thought you have put into making an ornament to give to someone who will spend their Christmas holiday away from family and in the confines of a hospital. Bless you.
Please SHARE this CF Rainbow Tree post with your groups, pages, and social media to help spread the word to the polymer community about this endeavor. Thank you in advance.
[…] secret that I have Cystic Fibrosis, it’s one of the reasons that I head up the CF Rainbow Tree [read about my CF & the trees here] every year. Living with a CF is certainly challenging! Just because I have a chronic illness, […]