Sheila Ethier, RN is the founder and Executive Director of the 

Blankets of Love Foundation for Mental Health.​

 

Sheila created the program in 1996 for patients facing challenges with mental illness at the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton, Alberta.

The program is now offered to hospitals across Canada.

Since it's inception we have provided thousands of Blankets of Love to patients in need.

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"I was a patient on the psychiatric ward at the University of Alberta Hospital several times for the treatment of major depression. I remember how lonely and isolated I had felt from the rest of the world. I was always cold and looking for more blankets.
"One afternoon while at home I came across a quilt my grandmother had made for me when I was a young girl. I looked at the worn, bright yellow and orange patchwork quilt and I remembered the day my grandmother had given it to me. In reliving memories of my grandmother and of the love expressed in making a quilt just for me I immediately felt a peace wash over me. I covered myself with my quilt made of love and let the warmth soothe my cold, achy body. In those quiet comforting moments I knew 'Blankets of Love' would help other people. And so the program began."
 

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