June 1, 2025
Spaulding R. Aldrich Heritage Gallery, 50 Douglas Road, Whitinsville, MA
The Welcome Blanket call for donations has ended, but the excitement is just starting!
Come to the Heritage Gallery on Thursday, November 6 from 5:00-7:30 pm to see more than 55 gorgeous hand crafted blanket donations hanging on our gallery walls. Enjoy a glass of wine and some cheese and mingle with blanket donors and representatives from the Worcester Refugee Assistance Project (WRAP). Then at 7:30 pm head next door to the Singh Performance Center to attend an exclusive presentation and Q&A with Jayna Zweiman, founder of Welcome Blanket, who is Zooming in all the way from LA on our brand new big screen! Also meet, in person, Millie Rao, board member and Executive Director, and Adeline Atamer, board member and Director of Communications for the Worcester Refugee Assistance Project (WRAP). The reception and presentation are free and the public is encouraged to attend.
See you there!
Welcome Blanket Call has ended. Thank you to all who participated by creating hand-crafted Welcome Blankets! Please join us at the above reception and presentation!
Do you sew, quilt, knit, or crochet? Would you like to help welcome and warm your new neighbors? Help ValleyCAST support two AMAZING initiatives! Dust off your needles and get started now!
What began as one blanket that Los Angeles based artist Jayna Zweiman handmade in 2017 to welcome a refugee family into the United States spawned into a national project called Welcome Blanket. Through Welcome Blanket, makers are encouraged to hand-make blankets that are then displayed in numerous exhibits across the country to help raise awareness and inspire participation. These blankets then go on to be gifted to newly incoming refugees.
Welcome Blanket reminds us of the similarities that people across diverse backgrounds and cultures share and is a celebration of the diversity that is woven into our nation.
ValleyCAST will collect donated blankets up to and during the week of October 20, 2025. Please see blanket guidelines below. The blankets will be displayed in the Heritage Gallery from November 6 until December 4. There will be a wine and cheese opening reception to view the blankets on Thursday, November 6, 2025, from 5:00-7:30 pm. Blankets will then be gifted in early December to the Worcester Refugee Assistance Project (WRAP).
Plan to also attend an exclusive presentation and Q&A with Jayna Zweiman, founder of Welcome Blanket Project, and Millie Rao, board member and Executive Director, and Adeline Atamer, board member and Director of Communications for the Worcester Refugee Assistance Project (WRAP) immediatly following the opening reception on Thursday, November 6 in the Singh Performance Center, next door to the Gallery. The reception and presentation are free and the public is encouraged to attend.
Information on blanket making workshops, knitting/crafting circles, and other events associated with this exhibit: ValleyCAST Sewing Circle with Anita Droby
4 Steps to participate:
1. Everyone is welcome to craft a Welcome Blanket. All mediums are welcome. Sew, knit, crochet, weave, etc. ... as long as it’s handmade with love!
Here are the design guidelines:
- 40” x 40”
- Easy to care for
- Hard to give away (it should hurt a little bit because you love it so much!)
2. Write a Welcome Note:
With your Welcome Blanket, please include a story important to your family about immigration, migration, or relocation along with some words of welcome for the recipient of your Welcome Blanket gift.
Please also include your name (anonymous is ok!), and just city/state, and blanket care instructions. Welcome Note Templates
3. Bring or mail your Welcome Blanket gift to the Heritage Gallery at the Alternatives’ Whitin Mill, 50 Douglas Road, Whitinsville, MA 01588 on or before October 24, 2025. Questions: 508-234-6232 | cristi.collari@openskycs.org
4. Don't forget to join us at the Welcome Blanket Gallery Opening Reception on Thursday, November 6 from 5:00-7:30 PM!
Visit the Welcome Blanket Instagram page to see more BEAUTIFUL handmade blanket donations and HEARTWARMING welcome notes!
Above images taken by Cristi Collari when she visited the amazing Welcome Blanket exhibit at the Rhode Island Museum of Work and Culture, which inspired her to reach out to Jayna Zweiman founder of Welcome Blanket, arrange a call to action, and to hold an exhibit here in the Heritage Gallery. Are you inspired to participate?
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