WEST COLUMBIA, S.C. — A mom in West Columbia is turning her grief into healing by collecting and donating new and handmade blankets.
"He was the sweetest little soul and he loved Disney and he was just always happy," Ashley Henry, Aiden's mother said.
Ashley Henry lost her son Aiden five months ago to his ventilator sounding an alarm signaling no pulse.
Aiden had been paralyzed from a car accident at the age of two and had a Tracheostomy tube, feeding tube and cognitive delays.
"I needed something good to come from the tragedy and the heartbreak that we were going through," Henry said.
Now she's donating blankets with a tag sharing Aiden's name and favorite bible verse to the local children's hospital in his honor.
"I just had the idea, inspired by this other mom that I had wanted to do something in my son's memory," Henry said.
Since her non-profit's inception in September 2021, she's given out about 150 blankets to children and families.
"I remember feeling on my way back home how good I felt that I had done that. By doing this and just sharing that in his memory, it's healing in a way for me," Henry said.
The PRISMA Health Children's Hospital couldn't be more thankful.
"I've noticed those donors who've been in the hospital really give us such personal gifts, such gifts that our families really connect with and our families are always really touched by it," said Becca Kelly, child life team lead at PRISMA Health Children's Hospital.
Ashley hopes to expand this to other hospitals, touching even more lives one blanket at a time.
To learn more, you can visit her Facebook page here.