Our Work

Each project we undertake is unique and serves a need in the community. Our work requires a team of committed volunteers and donations from the community. If you would like to donate funds, supplies, or your time to Living Stones Ministries Rock On!, please visit our donation page.

Hats for the Homeless

Living Stones Ministries Rock On! began with $200 worth of yarn in order to produce hats for those in need.

 Utilizing the time and skills of local assisted living center residents and staff, our team set to the task of producing as many hats as possible during the 40-day Lent period before Easter Sunday. Each individual played a vital role in this process.

While assisted living residents loomed and knitted, their friends and family would graciously donate yarn for their projects, and Memory care residents helped by untangling and preparing the yarn. With so many passionate volunteers and service-minded seniors, the number of hats grew quickly to 239 for a total of four organizations. A sense of excitement and confidence permeated the group after seeing the impact that their combined efforts had accomplished. With such success, the project continued and expanded.

As Living Stones Ministries founder Julie Shaffer recounts, "I had a resident in her motorized scooter, who decided to wait with me for the Number 60 bus. She noticed men, who wore the hats we made. I asked her how she felt. 'I am ready to make more hats!'"

If you would like to donate yarn or funds for hats, please let us know using our Contact Page. Thank you!

Bracelets of Remembrance

Living Stones Ministries Rock On! paired local high school students with a mentor. The student and their mentor met with the resident to create necklaces and bracelets. Each resident chose beads and elements to symbolize important events, individuals, and beliefs of their lives. The students listened to these life stories and wrote down the significance of each bead.

When the resident passed away, their bracelet or necklace was given to a loved one, such as a spouse, son, or daughter, along with their loved one’s story. The benefits of this project can be experienced by not only the families of the resident, but also the students as they gain awareness into the life of another person and take these lessons with them throughout their lives.

Sock It to Us

Many homeless walk miles daily in search of food and shelter. They walk through the elements, such as rain with chilly weather.  Their feet become cold, and then the rest of their body becomes cold. Tube socks provide protection from the cold and from infection and disease because wet socks also breeds bacteria. Living Stones Ministries Rock On! donated over 1,000 pairs of tube socks.

Living Stones Ministries Rock On! annual sock drive for the homeless is called, “Sock It to Us,” where we accept donations of new tube socks.  Our volunteers distributed more than 1,000 new tube socks to those living on the street since January 2016.

Necklaces for Silent Auctions

Many non-profits must rely upon auctions in order to raise the funds necessary operational expenses. Living Stones Ministries Rock On! recognizes this burden of other local charities. So assisted living residents created beautiful necklaces that were donated to organization’s silent auctions of their choice.

Christmas in July!

Living Stones Ministries Rock On! started celebrating Christmas in July during July 2015.

Twenty hats were gifted to two different churches: United Christian Church and to

All Pilgrims Church’s Community Feed Program. The hats gave warmth to those in need when the weather changed.

United Christian Church has received 165 hats and All Pilgrims have received 215 hats to date.

There was a sign at All Pilgrims Christian Church in the room, where the community feed program takes place. It said, “God loves you and there is nothing you can about it!”

The hats found good homes filled with love that reaches all. It's inclusive."

Soap for Christmas

Soap is an often overlooked luxury in our everyday lives. Without soap, many low income families and homeless individuals cannot maintain proper hygiene.

The residents loved the process of making soaps, and Living Stones Ministries Rock On! provided the supplies. When completed, volunteers gave out these soaps to those on the streets of Seattle.

Yarn for Nests

With the creation of thousands of knitted hats, we found ourselves with a large amount of excess yarn over time. Julie set herself the task of creating an event that would promote the values of Living Stones Ministries Rock On! using this excess yarn.

The staff from an adult family escorted their developmentally disabled residents to Lincoln Park to scatter small scraps of yarn for the birds to build their nests. The event was a huge success. Before admiring the birds through binoculars, residents had enjoyed offering the creatures supplies for their homes. Other families noticed the amount of joy that the residents were experiencing and joined in.

Living Stones Ministries Rock On! hosted another yarn scattering event for United Christian Church’s Sunday school. The teachers brought the youth and children to the Meditation Trail to experience the environment and enjoyed providing for the birds.

Ginger Bread Houses

Deb and Diane along with other Living Stones Ministries Rock On! volunteers made gingerbread houses for long-term care residents, who live in skilled nursing facilities.

Video: Deb and Diane were focused on making their gingerbread house for a particular resident and her friends. What were the gifts left on the roof?

Knot Blankets

Bolts of fleece and knot blanket kits were donated to Living Stones Ministries Rock On! so volunteers made knot blankets for children to add warmth to their Christmas Holiday and to give them something to call their own.

Homemade Bath Salt Gifts

Seniors assisted children from low-income families in making bath salts for their loved ones primarily their mothers as Mother’s Day gifts.

Homeless sleeping in front of a business along Broadway in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle.

Hospice residents created bracelets with each bead symbolizing a significant event, belief or person.

Hats, loomed & knitted by volunteer assisted-living residents, and ready to be distributed to warm those in need.

Residents designed necklaces for other nonprofits to raise funds through their respective silent auctions.

Volunteers from All Pilgrims Church accepted hats, loomed & knitted by volunteer assisted-living residents, for their Community Feed Program.

Besides Star Wars, Seahawks, and van Gogh's Starry Night knot blankets, here's a donated Noah's Ark blanket.

Diane puts finishing touches on one of the gingerbread houses to be enjoyed by nursing facility residents.

Sunday school teachers from United Christian Church took the youth and children to the church’s Meditation Trail and scattered the scraps of yarn for the birds to gather for their nests.

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