Monday, December 30, 2013

Why We Give To Sheffield Place

Why We Give to Sheffield Place
By Steve and Linda Hall, Little Apple Wooden Puzzles

For the past 20 years we have been making children’s wooden name puzzles.  Each puzzle is made individually by our own hands in Manhattan, Kansas.  We sell them primarily at craft shows, where we’ve witnessed over and over again the excitement and joy a child experiences when they see their name on one of our puzzles.  It is their name and they don’t have to share it with anyone. 

So when we became aware of Sheffield Place last year, we immediately pictured the faces of the children who live there.  What a perfect opportunity it would be for us to put smiles on the faces of these special children. We could give them a unique gift that is truly their own to keep forever.  We jumped at the chance.

What we didn’t anticipate was the huge number of children who live at Sheffield Place along with their mothers.  It made us aware of the incredible need there is for a place like this and the wonderful work done by the staff, board and volunteers.  In 2013, we made and gave 53 name puzzles to children at Sheffield Place.  And although we don’t know what each child looks like, we can definitely picture their smiling faces.   We’ve been seeing those smiles for 20 years.  And each name puzzle comes with our best wishes for a happy life.