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10 • SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 2022 • CAREGIVER
Satchels of Caring Foundation closing after
nearly two decades giving hope to cancer patients
Over the course of 19 years, these
hand-sewn fabric bags contained
more than scarves, journals and
tissues.
They also carried hope for recipients
dealing with cancer.
What started as a project in 2003
through the American Cancer
Society, the Satchels of Caring
Foundation was formed initially
to help women who lost their hair
because of cancer treatment by
giving them scarves.
It became a gesture giving them
much more than a pretty piece of
material as an accessory.
“I’ve seen patients over the
years cry and get so excited
that something was made just
for them,” said Heather Knuth,
president of the Satchels of Caring
Foundation board. “It really
brightens the day of a patient.
For them, it was a hug in a bag.”
Sadly, like many organizations
during the pandemic, Satchels
of Caring Foundation is closing
its doors.
The organization based in
Downtown Pittsburgh has a
lease that’s coming up. It’s been
difficult to find volunteers, and
not being able to hold in-person
fundraising events, Knuth said,
has also contributed.
Many of the volunteers came
from BNY Mellon in Downtown
Pittsburgh, a long-time partner in
the foundation’s mission.
“Although the need for satchels
is not diminished, covid-19
has impacted our core volunteer
network, and without in-person
fundraisers, our financial stability,”
Knuth said. “Our lease is up,
and it seemed like the right time
to move forward.”
Over the years, the organization
distributed more than 18,000
satchels.
As a cancer survivor, Knuth
knows that feeling of being in a
hospital for chemotherapy or radiation.
She reached out to UPMC
oncologist Dr. Stanley Marks who
was her doctor and showed him
the bags. He helped direct Knuth
to the then Cancer Caring Center.
“We’ve had a wonderful relationship
with the Cancer Caring
Center,” Knuth said. “I’ve met
people along the way who I never
would have met if I didn’t do this.
Being part of Satchels of Caring
has been a blessing. There are
so many wonderful memories.
We’ve received so many thankyou
notes. Those messages empowered
us to keep going. We
made people feel good, and that
was healing for me having been
through it.”
The connection to the Cancer
Caring Center was amazing, said
Rebecca Whitlinger, associate
director of Cancer Bridges (formerly
Cancer Caring Center and
Our Clubhouse).
“Because we’ve admired their
work for years, we feel honored
that Satchels of Caring chose to
fund some of our support programs
at Cancer Bridges,” Whitlinger
said. “We offer different
services, but share the same mission
of helping patients through
the cancer journey, and that feels
great.”
Knuth said they wanted to help
women going through cancer
treatment for a project and things
just evolved from there.
“Some women can’t afford wigs,
so we created a scarf design and
made that,” Knuth said. “Then
we needed something to put the
scarves, in so we created the bags,
or satchels, as we called them.”
In 2005, Satchels of Caring
approached teachers in middle
schools, high schools and colleges
to invite students to sew the bags
as part of the family consumer
science class.
“This expansion allowed us to
introduce our program to children
in the various communities
where we distributed satchels,”
said board member Eileen Iorio
of Bethel Park. “During this
time, our satchel recipients were
thrilled to get satchels crafted for
them by young students in the
community.”
They enclosed a photo of the
students holding the satchels they
created. They held a volunteer
day in partnership with businesses,
hospitals, schools and distributors
in the community, such
as SouthSide Works, Desmone
Architects, Integrity Design, St.Clair Hospital, Jefferson Hospital,
Indiana University and North
Hills Middle School.
Between 2006 and 2011, the organization
was awarded a Susan G.Komen Grant. The funds helped
to expand the program and deliver
satchels to underprivileged
counties and throughout Western
Pennsylvania to State College and
Erie, Knuth said.
“Over the years, I had the
privilege to personally deliver
our satchels to individuals and
to health facilities,” said Iorio.“Satchel recipients were always
overwhelmed that strangers
cared enough to give such
a beautiful handcrafted satchel
by JOANNE KLIMOVICH HARROP
PHOTOS: COURTESY OF HEATHER KNUTH
Satchels of Caring Foundation has provided hand-sewn decorative
fabric bags filled with essential items for women going through cancer
treatment for 19 years.
In 2005, Satchels of Caring reached out to teachers to invite students
in family consumer science classes to help make the bags.
“These are some of the worst days of their lives, and
to be given a beautiful, meaningful gift means the world to them.
When we meet these people, they share their stories with us.
The bags carry more than personal items. They carry love.”
HEATHER KNUTH