The Giving Doll, handmade with love for children who are sick or in crisis

By Patricia Nugent

Sometimes your life’s mission comes at you quietly, unexpectedly, and through the side door.

In 2006, retired teacher Jan Householder was asked by the 11-year-old daughter of a friend if she could make dolls she could bring back to comfort the other sick children in her ward at St. Jude Children’s Research Center.

Jan was touched by Katherine’s giving and compassionate nature, even though she was herself in need of comfort, suffering from an inoperable brain tumor.

“I handmade the first 12 dolls for the kids in her research group,” says Jan. “And within the next year or two, demand for more grew and grew. Once word got out, churches going on mission trips and other medical centers, children’s services agencies, police and fire departments were asking us for dolls. I decided to form a nonprofit and name it The Giving Doll in honor of Katherine’s generous spirit.”

Though the sweet girl is no longer with us, Jan likes to think a little bit of love from those first dolls goes into each one that’s still hand-made today.

“Our mission expanded from giving comfort dolls to sick children to giving them to children facing a life crisis, whether that means the death of a loved one, deployment of a military parent, divorce, poverty or homelessness,” she says.

To date, the concept has grown to 15 chapters across the United States that have sent comfort dolls as far as Australia, Argentina, Russia and Thailand.

In light of the fact that these precious dolls, all about the perfect size of a hug, are still handmade, with 14 different points in the production process, the fact that they’ve made 55,325 is astonishing.

Each soft-cloth doll comes with a generous-sized two-foot-square blanket, perfect for tucking them in at night, and an adorable little tote bag. The dolls come in boy and girl versions and every skin shade.

“I’ve Never Had a Doll Before”
Sometimes Jan goes into a school or orphanage to give comfort dolls to children in need. And she always leaves with a heartwarming story.

“We went into one school and there was an 11-year-old girl whose father had died the day before,” she recalls. “She hugged it tightly and said she had never had a doll before.”

A mother she remembers recognized the special bond her child had with his doll, so she cut the hair off little by little when he lost his hair during treatment, then sewed it back on when his hair grew back.

Here’s How You Can Help
“The need for volunteers is critical,” says Jan, “as the demand for our dolls keeps growing. We’re trying to encourage younger individuals and students to join our efforts as well, and have just added an evening doll-making session at world headquarters on the third Tuesday of every month, from 6 to 8 p.m.”

Additionally, the organization can always benefit from donations of material to make the blankets and clothing for the dolls, as well as gift cards to JoAnn’s and cash donations, which are easily managed through their site.

“And twice a year, in spring and fall, we throw a sale of material we’ve received that isn’t appropriate for making the dolls,” she says. “Funds go to growing our mission. This year the sale will take place either in late March or early April. Watch our website or Facebook page for an announcement.”

The Giving Doll World Headquarters is located at 2561 Wadsworth Road, in Norton. Call Jan Householder at 330-336-7246 or email her at jan@thegivingdoll.com to order a doll for a child in crisis, or to schedule your volunteer time. Visit TheGivingDoll.org for more information.