According to caregiver.com, as we age our bodies become sensitive to cold temperature. Among the reasons for that is a decrease in the metabolic rate that leaves aging bodies unable to generate enough heat to help maintain the normal temperature of 98.6 degree.
Joyce Trimble knows how to turn up the heat.
The 85-year-old resident of Curtis Creek senior independent living in Quincy has teamed up with a few other residents to make 12 dozen hand warmers so far with more to come. The finished products look like beanbags with white rice inside. Put them in the microwave for 25-to-30 seconds and – VOILA – toasty hands (or feet)!
“I’ve sewn ever since I was a kid,” Joyce said. “My mother got me started. When you live on the farm, you kind of have to sew.”
Looking for a useful way to use the scraps of material she had on hand, Joyce learned of the possibility of making hand warmers from fellow Curtis Creek resident Barb Deters. Barb said she and her sister, Mary Dietrich, “made lots of them over the years, helping lots of people.” Helping to move the project forward was Susan Tate, RN, Blessing Home Care. She bought the 50 pounds of white rice needed to fill the hand warmers. Susan met Joyce during one of Blessing Home Care’s weekly blood pressure clinics at Curtis Creek and wanted to be a part of the project.
“Joyce and her friends can inspire people,” Susan observed. “Some people get stuck in the challenges of aging. This project proves if you can get out of your own way, you are never too old to do things like this and stimulate your mind.”
The more than 144 hand warmers are headed to Sunset Home residents in Quincy and Joyce is on to her next project, making lap-sized quilts of which she has already completed two totes full. Susan Tate is again on Joyce’s team, supplying batting for the project.
“I enjoy sewing, and if I can help somebody, I will!” Joyce exclaimed.