Home : The Voice : February 2002 : Laugh

Just Laugh and Keep Trying

by G. David Campbell

It all started when one of the members of the Fork Creek Presbyterian Church in the Presbytery of East Tennessee noticed an article in "Guideposts" magazine. It told about a project of a church in Florida in which the women sewed turbans to be worn by cancer patients who had lost their hair. Helen Babaj, the Fork Creek member, sent for the pattern, made a few of them, and thought it would be a good project for the women at the church. The project was readily adopted, and the women gathered to cut and sew and knit cloth into colorful turbans.

Problems began after September 11, 2001; there was concern about unknown packages arriving by mail. Helen bundled up a package of the turbans and addressed them to the McGee Hospital in Pittsburgh. On the outside of the package she had wrirtten TURBANS and put her name, Helen Babaj, on the return address. The hospital staff had not ordered any turbans, especially from anybody with such a name; they became very suspicious as to what might be in the package. So they sent it back without opening it. It took a series of phone calls to convince the hospital that it was a gift for their cancer patients.

Trying to avoid such a situation again, she hand delivered a package of the turbans to a local hospital in Knoxville. They were also suspicious about why this woman was delivering turbans to the hospital. A number of the hospital staff gathered around while Helen herself opened the package, and put on one of the turbans, explaining what their purpose was. The staff gladly accepted the gift with much appreciation.

Since then, a number of grateful letters have been received from the cancer patients themselves. One woman wrote:

"Dear Ladies, I wish to thank you for the turban I received from the Cancer Center in Monroeville, PA. I didn't realize losing my hair would be as trying as it is. This gift of love made me realize how thoughtful you are! I hope all of you have a blessed holiday season. You are already sharing Christ's love."

To date, 820 turbans have been made by the women of this small 50-member church; they have been distributed to more than ten hospitals across the country. It has been a rewarding experience for all concerned.

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