Nobles of Elejmal Temple #185 Donate Blankets

By Jennifer L. Warren

NEWBURGH – A blanket can work wonders; it provides warmth, security and comfort. In some cases, it can even save a life.

For all those reasons and many more, the Nobles of Elejmal Temple #185 of the Ancient Egyptian Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (AEAONIMS) Inc. decided to raise the monies, purchase, and donate between 50-70 blankets to five different centers in an ongoing need of them. On November 23, the Newburgh Ministry, which has 19 beds in their upstairs section and 15 downstairs, as well as a warming station, was one of those locations warmly embracing the precious five box delivery of colorful blankets.

“Our goal is to make sure our clients here are as safe as possible,” explained Colin Jarvis, Executive Director of the Newburgh Ministry. “This donation means compassion to me; we need to be our brother’s keeper and to put ourselves in a position to help those less fortunate, and getting these blankets means someone might not freeze.”

As the Pandemic enters its second wave here in the Hudson Valley, the need for basic necessities continues to grow. However, the blanket donations were not a result of the Pandemic; rather, they were already something in the works since last December when Temple #185 already knew in their hearts and souls they wanted to give back to their surrounding communities. COVID has only spiked the already huge need for core essentials that exists all over the five counties (Orange, Westchester, Rockland, Dutchess and Sullivan) that they serve.

“We planned on doing something around this time of the year anyway; usually that is a turkey dinner and-or a coat drive,” pointed out Potentate Everett Johnson. “This blanket donation continues the legacy and standing on the shoulders of our forefathers in order to better assist the community just the way they did.”

In addition to the Newburgh Ministries Warming Center being recipients of blankets, so too was Hudson River Housing in Poughkeepsie as well as The Battered Woman’s Shelter and Coachman Family Center, both in White Plains. On December 9, the Grace Church in White Plains will be receiving their boxes of blankets.

One of the Temple 185’s members, HPIP Phil Howard, also serves on the Board of Directors at the Newburgh Ministry. Wanting to see more efforts and donations applied to the northern part of the state, Howard suggested the Ministry as a recipient of this altruistic blanket gesture. From Newburgh himself, the delivery of the blankets to the Ministry carried an extra special significance for Howard, who is actively involved in the community he cares passionately about on multiple levels.

“This blanket drive is about a sense of pride for me,” said Howard. “It really makes me very happy to be able to help out in some way, especially during the current Pandemic which has befallen all of us; we really wanted to donate something that could be of use right now, and to let people know that we are here to help out in any way we can.”