Derick the Defeater - Wrapped in Strength Project - WISP

💕 loved that we could be a small part of this💕
🔎I spy a WISP Brave Buddy Hospital Gown

Joy is not cancelled! 🩵💐🎗️🎀

Meet Blakely! She just celebrated her 5th birthday. She loves all things girly and is a sister to her 3 precious siblings. In March of last year she was diagnosed with T cell Lymphoblastic Lymphoma. For the last 13 months, her family has bravely fought childhood cancer with grace, hope, and a whole lot of love.

We were so honored to gift Blakely one of our custom OAF care packages- an opportunity to bring a smile while she undergoes treatment. It included a doll that looked like her, a dolly hospital gown from Derick the Defeater - Wrapped in Strength Project - WISP, port accessible pjs, and so many other fun goodies. It arrived at the perfect time as she was admitted to the hospital. While we realize a care package doesn’t cure. It doesn’t fix the hard or take it all away… a moment of joy can help heal.

This is your reminder today, that joy doesn’t have to end just because of a hard diagnosis, hard days, uncertain news, or hospital rooms. It’s still here… in the small moments, the quiet wins, the unexpected smiles.

Today, let this be your reminder to look for it.
To hold onto it.
To choose it anyway…. Joy is all around us and we will keep fighting for it… for all of Our Amazing Fighters. 💛

One last Wrapped in Strength Project hooded towel headed to Mia. 💕 #772

..helping others in memory of Derick

Special delivery made to Seattle Children’s Hospital for kids fighting cancer. 💙💚

Cow face?! IYKYK 😘

Just in case you’re not sure what a medical port is…

The first WISP Seatbelt Port Pillows for 🎗kids fighting cancer arrived at Naval Medical Readiness & Training Facility (aka NMCP, where Derick had treatment) in Portsmouth, VA. ❤️

After 11 wonderful years and wrapping 771 kids with cancer in cozy hooded towels, it’s time for a change. 💖
All the handling of bulky fabric and maneuvering it through the sewing machine has taken a toll on my hands and elbows. Now that arthritis has become my daily nemesis 😫, I’ll be shifting my focus to something a bit smaller, but still made with just as much love.
Introducing the Wrapped in Strength Project Seatbelt Port Pillows 💗
These small pillows strap onto a seatbelt to cushion and protect a child’s medical port, adding a little comfort during car rides.

🎉 While this project may not be as large in scale as the hooded towels, it’s still part of my life’s mission to “wrap” kids in Derick’s strength 🎗️

I Googled “sewing as therapy after losing a child”
…Sewing serves as a powerful therapeutic outlet after the loss of a child by providing a mindful, repetitive, and calming activity that helps to focus the mind, process overwhelming emotions, and foster a sense of control and accomplishment through creating something tangible. The act of stitching can symbolize piecing together feelings, allowing for a focus on the present while creating meaningful objects, such as memory quilts, comfort items, or even objects for other children, which can be a way to honor a child's memory and find comfort in making something new.
🎗️🪡 🧵💔

Though not related to 🎗childhood cancer or Wrapped in Strength Project….
We’ve done a few things throughout the years to help our community or people in need in honor of Derick.
Most recently are pouches for Senior Citizens. 154 distributed and another 59 pending delivery to Crestview Manor ❤️

Thank you to everyone who shared photos of your little fighters in their hooded towels. Those smiles mean more to me than you’ll ever know. It’s so special to see your kiddos wrapped up in the same kind of towels that Derick loved so much.