Wheelchair-bound vets get blankets made by students

The students at Oakland County Children’s Village School in Pontiac, which is operated by the Waterford School District under contract, are giving back to America’s veterans in a warm way.

The school has donated over 100 student-made blankets to veterans at Ann Arbor’s Veterans’ Hospital as part of the program “Lap Blankets for Veterans.”

The students created the blankets after school and the blankets are placed in the laps of veterans who are confined to wheelchairs.

“One of our teachers, Bonnie Wells, has a son in the military and thought this would be something for our students to do,” said Diane Behrendt, Children’s Village School principal. “The kids can receive community service credit for their efforts — it’s amazing.”

She added that the blankets were created by students ranging from seventh- to 12th-graders.

Wells applied for grants to buy the materials and the grants were presented by the Waterford Foundation, Metro North Credit Union, and the Children’s Village Foundation.

Classroom teacher assistants Sue Dannenberg, Shannon Lovegrove, and Linda Smith also helped organize the program.

Similar lap blanket for veterans drives are held throughout the country.

Oakland County Children’s Village seeks to provide education and guidance for troubled youth and juvenile offenders.