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<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Ruth Boscov Aichenbaum wears a locket around her neck that opens to display a baby picture of Ruth with her dad, Albert Boscov, the iconic retail giant who died Feb 10.</p><p>Aichenbaum said wearing the locket keeps her father close to her heart.</p><p>Aichenbaum was at Boscov&#8217;s Wilkes-Barre store Friday to help kick off a project she said her father would be proud of &#8212; &#8220;A Blanket from Al&#8221; &#8212; which will provide new full, queen- or king-size blankets to people in need, including the homeless. She was accompanied by her son, Josh.</p><p>&#8220;Dad would love this project,&#8221; Aichenbaum said. &#8220;He instilled helping people and the community in our core values. We will continue to help the community and those in need any way we can.&#8221;</p><p>Aichenbaum said she remembers visiting Wilkes-Barre when her father was thinking about buying the South Main Street store.</p><p>&#8220;He loved Wilkes-Barre and we love Wilkes-Barre,&#8221; she said. &#8220;I remember how excited he would get when he came to Wilkes-Barre. He really enjoyed it here and the people.&#8221;</p><p>So in memory of her late father, Boscov&#8217;s Department Stores across Luzerne, Lackawanna and Schuylkill counties, including Wilkes-Barre, Scranton, Hazleton and Pottsville, are collecting warm blankets to give to those in need.</p><p><strong>About the project</strong></p><p>The blanket project began Friday and will run through Oct. 31. All blankets donated will go to those in need to help keep them warm during the upcoming winter season. Last year, Scranton alone collected over 300 blankets. This year, Boscov&#8217;s hopes to dramatically increase that number across all participating locations.</p><p>In addition to Boscov&#8217;s, there will be various locations throughout the region that will provide collection sites.</p><p>&#8220;Albert Boscov would have celebrated his 88th birthday on Sept. 22 of this year,&#8221; said Irene Kelly, Boscov&#8217;s regional manager of public relations. &#8220;So it is appropriate on the anniversary of his birth to launch this community outreach project and maintain Boscov&#8217;s commitment to the communities we serve.&#8221;</p><p>Monsignor Joseph Kelly, former executive director of Catholic Social Services, helped to put the project together. He said taking care of the needy is a never-ending process.</p><p>&#8220;We serve about 300 per day at the St. Vincent de Paul kitchen in Wilkes-Barre,&#8221; Kelly said. &#8220;In Scranton at St. Francis kitchen, we serve about 200 per day.&#8221;</p><p>However, Kelly said there are many more needy people out there who often go undetected. He said Catholic Social Services operates Mother Therese Haven for homeless men, but far more live in abandoned buildings and tents. He said the shelters operated by CSS only accept those who are willing to be alcohol- and drug-free and who want to return to self-sufficiency.</p><p>&#8220;The chronically homeless remain that way by choice and I respect their right to choose that way of life,&#8221; Kelly said. &#8220;But I still feel we must feed and clothe them the best we can.&#8221;</p><p>Kelly said blankets will help many get through the winter. He said items like socks and underwear are also needed.</p><p><strong>The first &#8216;Blanket from Al&#8217;</strong></p><p>&#8220;This project is a wonderful tribute to my grandfather,&#8221; Josh Aichenbaum said. &#8220;He spent his life giving back to the community.&#8221;</p><p>Ruth Aichenbaum added: &#8220;Al always had a blanket for those in need.&#8221;</p><p>And that&#8217;s really how the project began, as told by Irene Kelly.</p><p>Irene Kelly said Albert Boscov&#8217;s wife, Eunice, once told a story that Kelly said moved her to come up with the project to honor her longtime boss.</p><p>During a ceremony in Reading a few years ago, Boscov was being honored and a statue was unveiled of his likeness. Eunice told a story about her husband, recalling an incident that occurred early in their marriage.</p><p>Eunice said she and Al were driving through the mountains in New York State and came upon an accident. On a recording played at the meeting, Eunice can be heard telling the story:</p><p>&#8220;Albert pulled over and reached for a blanket in the trunk of his car. He never hesitated to help the injured person. Al always had a blanket for anyone that needed one.&#8221;</p><p>Eunice said Al took the blanket to the scene of the accident to see if someone could use it.</p><p>That&#8217;s when Kelly said &#8220;a light went off in her head.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I thought, we need to do a blanket drive in Albert&#8217;s memory,&#8221; she said.</p><p>Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George attended the kickoff and said he thought it was another great community idea from Boscov&#8217;s.</p><p>&#8220;Boscov&#8217;s has always been here for the community, for their customers and for the city,&#8221; George said. &#8220;And the city will always be there for Boscov&#8217;s.&#8221;</p><p>To learn more about the blanket project, contact Irene Kelly at 570-823-4141 or at ikelly@boscovs.com</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/web1_TTL92317BlanketfromAl1-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Boscov&#8217;s regional manager of public relations Irene Kelly talks about the first year of the &#8216;A Blanket from Al&#8217; project with, from left, Wilkes-Barre Boscov&#8217;s store manager Ryan Thomas; Hazleton Boscov&#8217;s store manager Kim Gormley; Scranton Boscov&#8217;s manager Steve Vituszynski; daughter of Al Boscov, Ruth Aichenbaum, with her son, Josh; Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George; and Msgr. Joseph Kelly at the Boscov&#8217;s in Wilkes-Barre on Friday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/web1_TTL92317BlanketfromAl1-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Boscov&#8217;s regional manager of public relations Irene Kelly talks about the first year of the &#8216;A Blanket from Al&#8217; project with, from left, Wilkes-Barre Boscov&#8217;s store manager Ryan Thomas; Hazleton Boscov&#8217;s store manager Kim Gormley; Scranton Boscov&#8217;s manager Steve Vituszynski; daughter of Al Boscov, Ruth Aichenbaum, with her son, Josh; Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George; and Msgr. Joseph Kelly at the Boscov&#8217;s in Wilkes-Barre on Friday. </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/web1_TTL92317BlanketfromAl2-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Irene Kelly of Boscov's introduces Al Boscov's daughter, Ruth Aichenbaum, and Aichenbaum's son Josh with Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George and Msgr. Joseph Kelly during the kickoff of the 'Blankets from Al' project in the Wilkes-Barre Boscov's store. 9/22/17. Sean McKeag | Times Leader</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/web1_TTL92317BlanketfromAl2-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Irene Kelly of Boscov's introduces Al Boscov's daughter, Ruth Aichenbaum, and Aichenbaum's son Josh with Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George and Msgr. Joseph Kelly during the kickoff of the 'Blankets from Al' project in the Wilkes-Barre Boscov's store. 9/22/17. Sean McKeag | Times Leader</caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/web1_TTL92317BlanketfromAl3-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Standing in the back row are Kim Gormley, Hazleton Boscov's store manager, and Scranton Boscov's store manager Steve Vituszynski.  In the front row are Al Boscov's daughter Ruth Aichenbaum with her son and Al's grandson Josh, Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George and Msgr. Joseph Kelly in the Wilkes-Barre Boscov's store as they begin the 'Blankets from Al' project. 9/22/17. Sean McKeag | Times Leader</div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/web1_TTL92317BlanketfromAl3-1.jpg</photo2><caption2>Standing in the back row are Kim Gormley, Hazleton Boscov's store manager, and Scranton Boscov's store manager Steve Vituszynski.  In the front row are Al Boscov's daughter Ruth Aichenbaum with her son and Al's grandson Josh, Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George and Msgr. Joseph Kelly in the Wilkes-Barre Boscov's store as they begin the 'Blankets from Al' project. 9/22/17. Sean McKeag | Times Leader</caption2><photoCredit2></photoCredit2></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/web1_BlanketsfromAl.cmyk_-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Boscov&#8217;s regional manager of public relations Irene Kelly talks about the first year of the &#8216;A Blanket from Al&#8217; project with, from left, Wilkes-Barre Boscov&#8217;s store manager Ryan Thomas; Hazleton Boscov&#8217;s store manager Kim Gormley; Scranton Boscov&#8217;s manager Steve Vituszynski; daughter of Al Boscov, Ruth Aichenbaum, with her son, Josh; Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George; and Msgr. Joseph Kelly at the Boscov&#8217;s in Wilkes-Barre on Friday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo3>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/web1_BlanketsfromAl.cmyk_-1.jpg</photo3><caption3>Boscov&#8217;s regional manager of public relations Irene Kelly talks about the first year of the &#8216;A Blanket from Al&#8217; project with, from left, Wilkes-Barre Boscov&#8217;s store manager Ryan Thomas; Hazleton Boscov&#8217;s store manager Kim Gormley; Scranton Boscov&#8217;s manager Steve Vituszynski; daughter of Al Boscov, Ruth Aichenbaum, with her son, Josh; Wilkes-Barre Mayor Tony George; and Msgr. Joseph Kelly at the Boscov&#8217;s in Wilkes-Barre on Friday. </caption3><photoCredit3></photoCredit3></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Boscov’s daughter says ‘A Blanket from Al’ project would make her dad proud