TULSA, Okla. — Like clockwork, at 1 p.m. every Tuesday, in room 265 at University Village Retirement Community, a sisterhood gathers.
"At 74, I'm the baby- they're all older than me!" said Linda Evans.
Just a few steps away is 99-year-old Rea, and just beside her is Mary, who is about to turn 100.
These ladies are part of a circle of friends linked by a common mission. "We make what we call Encouraging Cuffs," said Mickey Black, Lifestyle Enrichment Coordinator for University Village.
Black came up with the idea. "In 2020, I went through Cancer. At the Cancer Center one day, I saw this hat rack with hats on it that said Healing Hats. The place was so sad, and I thought I wanted to do something like that to make a difference; I wanted to bring happiness to the Cancer Center."
Black made bracelets as a hobby and decided to gift them to Cancer patients.
She'd call them Encouraging Cuffs and adorn them with uplifting messages. "Faith, hope, miracle, all kinds of encouraging tags we put on them," said Black.
She brought the idea to the residents where she worked. "I asked them one day if they'd like to take the project on with me, and we've been doing it for about a year."
With twine, tiny beads, and time on their hands, the group creates the comforting cuffs together.
"We all have an inner mom and grandma and love making things to give to people," said resident Sharon Shuermann. Ferne Lassman, another resident, adds, "It makes me feel good because I feel like I'm giving someone joy in their life."
The ladies make around 25 bracelets each Tuesday afternoon.
"Just a little encouraging word to that person on that day. It touches their lives and maybe makes them think of something other than that tragedy. I love making the bracelets," said resident Linda Evans.
"I drop off 75 to 100 every first of the month to Oklahoma Cancer Specialist and Research, and they have them in Radiology in a basket. The lady there said they go so fast that the ladies really love them. That it makes their day," said Black.
Within the past few months, the group expanded its reach and started making bracelets just for kids at the Children's Hospital at Saint Francis.
Shuermann is the resident in charge of that project. She said, "I just think about all those little kids going through a tough time for a child. Something like this diverts their attention from what's going on around them for a while, and you know, especially for a little girl, they love something blingy."
Those cuffs started from a gift of children's beads, and donations help the group make and give away the cuffs for free.
"It's just like the fish and the loaves in The Bible. We haven't run out of beads yet. It just keeps multiplying!" said Black.
The blessings don't stop there. The residents say this project has given them a new purpose.
"I do in the making of the bracelets and the in the fact that we get together. And it is something to divert sometimes the attention from what's going on in our own lives, you know, that helps us a great deal too," said Shuermann.
"It makes me like, OK, I have something left to contribute. At this point in life, God's not finished with me yet," said Evans.
As for Black, she tells 2 News, "I have been cancer-free for four years. I feel so blessed." And she’s grateful that a journey that started in a room full of sadness has now led to a room full of sparkle, support, and smiles.
"Oh, Mickey is a great person- there's no way around it!" says Lassman.
If you'd like to donate to Encouraging Cuffs, email Black at mblack@uvrc.com.
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