Our Story

A 2015 Department of Energy study found 25 million American households skipping food and medicine to pay for energy, with 7 million reporting they did so every month.

Our Story

Two years ago I began volunteering for a peer mentoring group in New York. This organization matched kids diagnosed with a mental health disorder to an older student in order to help build a friendship. I was matched with an 11-year-boy who showed me his harsh reality. I was able to help him escape it for some period of time, as Johnnie was fascinated by the size and variety of college libraries. After we would spend a few hours studying and talking, Johnnie would invite me over to watch TV with his dad and older brother.

There we were, four guys huddled together on one couch in front of three electric space heaters, bundled up with winter coats inside in January. The local news would be on and Johnnie’s father liked to share stories every time I came. When it was time to go to bed, the boys would each take one heater to their bedroom to help stay warm and I would walk outside to my car in the 15ºF weather wearing the same clothes I had on in the house.

Something did not feel right. Johnnie’s father would wake up early, shovel the driveways of his elderly neighbors, and make sure he could offer me dinner when I was over. He was a caregiver to the greatest extent that he could be, and no one was returning the favor. Growing up we are told if we work hard and are kind to others, we will be okay. This young boy and his father did both of those things and still had to struggle just to stay warm in the winter.

In any way, Johnnie’s Blankets hopes to change that.

-Carter B.