Ming Wang has specialized in high-quality women’s knitwear for more than 30 years, but several years ago the company launched a product that would do so much more than add to a woman’s wardrobe. This new piece would bring hope to cancer patients across the country.
The 2017 Ming Wang Hope Wrap.
Approached by the staff at the Northwell Health Cancer Institute in Long Island, New York, the Ming Wang team was challenged with designing a scarf that would keep patients warm during chemotherapy sessions and doctor’s appointments. But as ideas began spinning, the concept for a scarf turned into a luxurious, cozy wrap: the Hope Wrap. The Hope Wrap was so well-received that the Ming Wang team partnered with the American Cancer Society to provide wraps for patients who were staying at their Hope Lodge, which offers cancer patients and their caregivers a free place to stay when their best hope for effective treatment may be in another city.
Starting in 2015 Ming Wang committed that for each Hope Wrap that was sold, one would be donated to a cancer patient. That year they donated 1,750 Hope Wraps to patients staying at Hope Lodges around the United States. In 2016 2,268 wraps were donated, and this year the Ming Wang team expects to donate 2,500 or more wraps.
“Through this wrap, we are letting cancer survivors know that they aren’t alone in their battle,” said Maggie Gala, Social Media Specialist at the Ming Wang corporate headquarters in Grapevine. “I’m a daughter of a cancer victim and was a member of Gilda’s Club. I love that everyone can use a Hope Wrap – it’s like a warm embrace.”
Hope Lodge patients receiving their Hope Wraps in November 2016.
The Ming Wang team is especially excited about this coming year as the American Cancer Society will break ground on the first Dallas-based Hope Lodge. Located in Deep Ellum near Baylor Medical Center, the Hope Lodge Dallas will include 50 patient suites, a communal kitchen and living area, and a healing garden.
Hope Lodge Dallas, designed by Perkins+Will.
“The American Cancer Society is committed to removing barriers to care and improving quality of life for cancer patients and their caregivers. Our Hope Lodge locations provide free lodging and support for cancer patients and their caregivers when their best hope for effective treatment may be in a city far from home,” said Lolette May, Executive Director, American Cancer Society North Texas. “We are grateful to Ming Wang for helping to bring an extra measure of comfort to patients staying in a Hope Lodge.”
And the Hope Wrap isn’t the only way that the Ming Wang team is giving back. In addition Ming Wang also also supports local DFW nonprofits like Helping Restore Ability, NewDay Services, and Gatehouse, along with World Of Children, an organization dedicated to improving the lives of children around the world.
If you’d like to purchase this year’s Hope Wrap and help provide a wrap for a cancer patient, they are available at Dillard’s and the Ming Wang website.
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Story by Mary Martin. Photos courtesy of Ming Wang.
