Mission Statement
“The Snug as a Bug Bags Germany project provides comfort bags filled with handmade blankets and other comfort items to children in need in both Germany and other countries in Europe. We distribute comfort bags to children of US servicemembers stationed in Germany as well as to European children who are experiencing traumatic and difficult situations.”
I grew up in Los Angeles and went to college in San Diego, where I met my husband. In 1992 my husband and I went to Germany for an 18-month commitment for his work as a defense contractor, which turned into 33 years. We spent 13 years in the Hohenfels area, where our son was born in 1999. Then in 2005 we moved to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, where I work on the US military base there. My husband is retired and my son works as an engineer.
I have known Allison since we were in high school. After losing touch with each other for about 20 years we reconnected in the early 2000s, when my son was a toddler. We picked up right where we left off! In the very early days of Snug as a Bug Bags, Allison asked for help with either sewing or donations. I told her that I can’t sew and that my D in 7th grade sewing was generous. But I said that I can knit. I had enough yarn left over from various projects to knit my first 5 blankets for Snug as a Bug. Now I have lost track of the number of blankets that I knit. I spend 2 to 3 hours every night knitting for Snug as a Bug.
Snug as a Bug Bags have gone to both military kids in Germany and Eastern European kids. The children’s counselor on the US military base where I work keeps a few bags on hand for kids who are struggling. In 2022 20 bags were sent to Ukraine as part of aid donations going to that country. Fifteen bags were also distributed later that year to children of Ukrainian refugees who were resettled in the Garmisch-Partenkirchen area. We have also given out 12 bags to US military children who were experiencing difficulty in their family lives. Before Christmas time, one of the people on base coordinates a project to send boxes to children in Eastern European orphanages, who are the poorest of the poor. Last year 17 Snug as a Bug bags went to children in an orphanage in either Poland, Ukraine, Romania, or Bosnia. We are planning to work with an individual who brings aid to Ukraine to bring Snug as a Bug bags with him and distribute them.
Allison personifies the spirit of service and how one person can make a big difference in the lives of many. I am honored to be a part of the Snug as a Bug Bags team.
– Sue Biegeleisen
Introduction
Snug as a Bug Bags Germany is the first sister club to distribute comfort bags to kids in Europe. As of now, it is still a two-person operation (Allison and me) that creates comfort bags for children in difficult situations.
Each Snug as a Bug bag contains the following: A handmade blanket or quilt, a stuffed animal, a coloring or sticker book, crayons or colored pencils, a small toy, and basic hygiene items. They provide comfort to kids in need such as: kids in US military families experiencing stress from moving or having a deployed parent, Ukrainian refugee children being resettled in southern Bavaria, kids in Ukraine, and children in Eastern European orphanages. Our bags are distributed through the US Army Garrison Bavaria Garmisch community family counselors and chapel as well as through private individuals in the Garmisch community.
Donation
Donations help Allison to purchase supplies such as: fabric, toys, stuffed animals, coloring or sticker books, crayons, and postage to send these items to Germany. All money given to Snug as a Bug Bags goes directly to items to fill the bags. All of the people involved with Snug as a Bug Bags are volunteers. Every contribution, no matter the amount, brings comfort to a child or teenager in need.
How You Can Help
Together we can bring comfort, kindness, and hope to children when they need it most.
There are 3 ways you can support Snug as a Bug Bags Germany:
Volunteer
Donate Supplies
Make a Financial Donation
Interested in getting involved? Email spezi3@yahoo.com to connect with Snug As A Bug Germany.
