THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 6, 1994 TAG: 9411050088
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHYLLIS SPEIDELL, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 59 lines
Any child will tell you that a close friend can make even the scariest situation more bearable.
For some children in Suffolk, Norfolk and Portsmouth who are small victims of violent crime, home-lessness or life-threatening illnesses, a soft stuffed bear might be the friend that helps them through the toughest times.
Today across the United States and Canada, Telephone Pioneers of America - telecommunications industry workers and retirees - are sponsoring Hug-A-Bear Sunday, donating handmade stuffed bears to local agencies to give to children who have been through a traumatic experience.
Started in 1979 in a South Dakota pediatrics ward, the program has given away more than a million bears since then.
Kathy Shultz, a Bell Atlantic-Virginia secretary who lives in Suffolk, chaired this year's Hug-A-Bear project for the Tidewater chapter of the Telephone Pioneers.
``The bears are all handmade and all the materials were donated, so they are all different with their own personalities,'' she said.
There are Hawaiian bears decked out in tropical floral prints, gingham bears, plaid bears, cuddly terry cloth bears, and even blue denim bears. For safety reasons the bears' faces were all painted on with no small parts for toddlers to pull off and swallow.
``We even gave the female bears long eyelashes and sexy eyebrows,'' Shultz said.
This week Schultz's volunteers donated more than 150 bears to three local agencies including:
Edmarc, a nonprofit agency set up to serve children who are diagnosed as terminally ill. Headquartered in Portsmouth, the agency serves all of Hampton Roads.
The YWCA Women in Crisis program and shelter in Norfolk for women and children who are victims of domestic violence. About 80 percent of the program's 600 to 800 clients come from Norfolk and Virginia Beach.
The Suffolk Victim/Witness Assistance Program, in the Commonwealth Attorney's Office. Program Director Diane Bryant estimated she sees 50 to 75 children a year who are victims of or witnesses to crimes.
``The Hug-A-Bear program is exciting for me because it will help in preparing kids for court and in explaining the court process to them,'' Bryant said. ``The court process can be a long one, and the longer it takes the more anxious they can get.''
Bryant already keeps a Teddy bear in her office, a sort of support blanket for her youngest clients.
``But they have to give him back afterward. These bears will be something that they can hold onto and talk to when they are scared or anxious and then take with them.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by JOHN H. SHEALLY II
Kathy Shultz, left, and Frances Shelton collect bears for children.
by CNB