History

History 

25 years serving Michiana

2021 marks the 25th year that Busy Hands has served our community. What started with one woman’s vision, joined by another, then a handful of volunteers, has grown into a 501-c 3 non-profit organization of more than 75 volunteers, mostly senior women and men, serving over 120 agencies in nine counties of Northern Indiana and Southwest Michigan.

In 1996, Doris Gearhart handled calls for Helpline and heard many stories of people lacking funds to provide adequate heat and purchase warm clothing. As a result, she used her sewing and crocheting talents to make quilts, lap robes, afghans, hats, scarves and mittens to give to those in need. Jean Stockman became her helpmate in a rapidly growing senior volunteer program. Once word got out, donations of supplies and the number of volunteers grew.

In 1998, working from their homes or in senior community centers, volunteers made items for the first “Warm-up Michiana” event. Busy Hands (as the group called itself), gave away 300 handmade items to not-for-profit agencies to help those in need. This annual give-away grew each year in the number of items given and the number of agencies served. Busy Hands was offered a meeting/storage room with Memorial Hospital for two years, then a space with Catholic Charities for a few years. In 2009, the Food Bank of Northern Indiana offered an unused area on the second floor of the Food Bank’s warehouse.

The large area required many hours of painting, organization, and installation of storage units, lighting, and creating work areas. Having a large, dedicated space allowed Busy Hands to expand. They began to develop products to serve autistic children with expert guidance from area therapists. They were able to expand their service area beyond St. Joseph County to ultimately serve 9 counties in Michiana. And most importantly, instead of an annual give-away of warmth items, they now were available four days a week to nursing homes, hospitals, therapists, and other agencies serving people dealing with a variety of life challenges. Busy Hands of Michiana met the qualifications required and became a 501-c 3 non-profit organization in 2010.

Busy Hands served Michiana well from its location at the Food Bank of Northern Indiana. The Food Bank’s generous donation of that space was instrumental in the growth of Busy Hands and its expansion of the number of products made and agencies served. But, in 2019, circumstances changed for the Food Bank and they needed to re-claim the space for their mission. Busy Hands needed to find a new location.

After a long search, Busy Hands was offered several rooms in the lower level of River Park United Methodist Church. The church family’s generosity and welcoming spirit has made us feel at home in our new location. Thus, in 2020 at the outbreak of the Covid-19 Pandemic, we moved and organized our new space. Mindful of health and safety restrictions Busy Hands re-opened in June. Even before re-opening, our volunteers were well involved working at home to make face masks in response to a new community need.

Busy Hands 25 year history is marked by steady growth in both the variety of items we make and the number of people we serve. But it is our volunteers that are Busy Hands greatest asset. Every person in the Busy Hands family is a volunteer. Many come in to work every day. Many more work from home and every few weeks they bring in dozens of items they have crocheted, knit and sewn. Most volunteers are retired senior citizens who wish to remain active participants in life and contribute to their community. We are so grateful to our volunteers who choose to use their talents in such a meaningful way. We trust that Busy Hands of Michiana will continue its mission for many years to come.