Sudan Blankets of Love - Children's project shines spotlight on war-torn Sudan

On Valentine's Day, when most people were thinking of the person closest to their hearts, a group of local home-schooled children - and parents - tried to draw attention to the suffering people of war-torn Sudan, reports Julia Pecquet Staff Writer for Tallahassee Democrat:

About 20 children gathered Tuesday to share their research on the country's people; they also brought blankets for the inhabitants of Sudan. They hope their actions will bring some comfort to the Sudanese.

"I thought it was good to give blankets," said Andrea Hatler, 12. "I didn't really know about where they lived, how they lived."

"A simple blanket is a night's rest. It is shade by day. It is a way to carry their infant or their few possessions, as well as a powerful reminder that someone in America loved them enough to send a blanket - just for them."

As the home-schooled children found out looking at the ongoing conflict in Darfur, what's going on is complicated.

"I was surprised they were burning down the buildings," said Malachi Hatler, 12. "I thought they would keep them and move some of their people there. I was also surprised that they were burning the food. . . . I thought that they would haul off the food to wherever they lived."

Since 1998 "Sudan Blankets of Love" project has collected more than a quarter of a million blankets. Teresa Hatler will be collecting blankets for another two weeks. Contact her at 212-5783, or hatler77@yahoo.com. For more information visit Voice of the Martyrs online: www.persecution.com.



Photo: Baby at ZamZam camp for internally displaced people near El-Fashir, northern Darfur, Sudan by journalist Andrew Heavens