OHIO Zanesville nursing students warm up the community with blanket drive

In support of the annual Good Samaritan Blanket Drive, the Ohio University Zanesville Student Nurse Association (SNAZ) held a blanket drive in December that directly benefited Eastside Community Ministries, located at 221 Stillwell Street in Zanesville. 

The Good Samaritan blanket drive began 32 years ago when the Good Samaritan Nursing School class of 1960 started it. “We’ve collected over 7,000 blankets in those 30 years, and over $30,000 for heat bills,” said Carol Kohler, a Good Samaritan Nursing School graduate.

“I'm 80 years old and most of the people that are around for this little thing are older than me, maybe 83, and then we have some older ones but as you see, we're going to run out,” Kohler said. “So, what it (the new blanket drive) means is longevity, that people are going to know who we are, where we have come from, and what we've done for the community.” 

The nursing students participated in a competition between the classes to bring in the most blankets. The junior Bachelor of Nursing (BSN) class won the competition, and they assisted with the donation drop off to Eastside Community Ministries. Altogether, the nursing students brought in around 250 blankets to help warm up the Zanesville community.

“I am so happy that the BSN junior class was able to help out with the blanket drive, along with all the other fellow nursing students,” Yvonne Moore, nursing student, said. “We are so grateful for Economy Linen’s donation to our blanket drive. With their help, we were able to provide over 200 blankets to those in need. Remember that you can help those in need by donating blankets or clothing to local community organizations anytime this winter season.” 

Chad Seastrand, general manager of Economy Linen, heard about the blanket drive and decided to support the BSN students in their efforts. Economy Linen provided a significant number of thermal blankets. After learning more about the blanket drive from the OHIO Zanesville social media pages, he reached out to the nursing program ready to give back.  

“We are a long-standing company…this was a great opportunity to donate to the cause and the initiative,” Seastrand said. “We also have a connection to OUZ just because I am an alum, and my daughter is in the nursing program herself. Not only do we want to service our customers, but we also want to serve our community, and, in this moment, there was no better way to serve the community during this holiday season than to donate blankets for the OUZ nursing blanket drive.”

 “The most awesome thing that happened was that she (Eastside Community Ministries Executive Director Jamie Trout) said, ‘We are totally out of blankets at this point in time so we would have had to turn away any community members who came in looking for a blanket,’” Teresa Polen, OHIO Zanesville assistant professor of nursing, said. 

Members of the community can donate blankets in the Genesis Hospital lobby, located at 2951 Maple Ave, Zanesville, OH 43701.

Discover more about the OHIO Zanesville Nursing program by attending the 2023 Nursing Showcase or other campus visit events.  Register online by visiting www.ohio.edu/zanesville/visit.