Bringing blessings one bear at a time

Wanda Wiley might appear to be a small lady, but she has a big heart. She has taken it upon herself to help move the thousands of stuffed animals her sister collected. “My niece wants to give these away in memory of her mother,” Wiley said.

Thus far she has brought back 805 stuffed animals from her trips to Detroit. “There’s about 22 years of stuff to go through,” Wiley said.

So far she has dropped off bags of stuffed animals to the Lexington Police Department, Harrodsburg Police Department and UK Children’s Hospital and House of Grace, Hope and Mercy.

“If people are hurting, you can find a way to give them help. So it’s a part of life. It’s what the Lord’s called me to do,” Wiley said. There are still bins of stuffed animals in storage in Frankfort, and Wiley said she expects to take at least three more trips to Detroit. “I feel like this is mission work in its self. It’s the giving of what’s there and what you have and that’s why I’ve got to give right now,” she said.

Wiley hopes the animals will bring a sense of joy and comfort to those who receive them, just like they did to her sister.

To learn more, pick up this week’s issue of The Harrodsburg Herald.