WHRO discusses the mission of Blankets for the Homeless, as they go out 4 nights a week delivering 50 blankets and more, to an ignored community. On any given night, the 501(c)(3) provides blankets, coats, hoodies, jeans, clothes, hats, gloves, shoes, back packs, tents, tarps, toiletries, etc., & lunches to the homeless.

PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) – Founder Mariah Smith and her mother, Moira Askew talked about Blankets for the Homeless. Mariah started the organization when she was just 17 years old. She and her mother distribute blankets, clothes, toiletries and anything else that is needed to the homeless of Hampton Roads. They go out at all hours of the day and night when called for help. Also, Mariah told us, she was once homeless. When she was born, 21 years ago, she was abandoned by her birth mother. Moira Askew and her husband adopted Mariah when she was two years old.

Twenty years after she was born and abandoned on Christmas Eve, Mariah Smith is working to warm the hearts and spirits of those in need this holiday season, earning the nickname "Blanket Girl."

Smith, the founder of Blankets for the Homeless, started her mission at the age of 17, after an encounter in a parking lot left a lasting impression. She saw a homeless man coughing and shivering, and, wanting to do something to ease his discomfort, gave him a blanket from her car and offered her the food she had just bought.