Local Businesswoman Wants to Bring Snuggling to Your Neighborhood

PORTLAND, Ore. - Nov. 18, 2014 - PRLog -- Shanya Luther, former youth pastor and founder and director of Among Friends, LLC is creating the first ever Snuggle Mobile; designed to foster compassion and connection between people of diverse backgrounds and help alleviate ‘skin hunger’ - our biological need for nurturing touch.  Ms. Luther will debut the Snuggle Mobile in Portland, Oregon in the Spring of 2015 before taking it on the road.

Luther knows just how important nurturing touch is – especially among individuals who are often isolated, including people with chronic illness, special needs and the elderly.  In her work, Luther has studied the negative health impacts stemming from a lack of loving touch and observes that many of her clients who don’t receive touch feel lonely and neglected.  By contrast, current research acknowledges the numerous benefits of affectionate touch.  Leading health organizations have discovered the importance of Oxytocin – a hormone released when we share friendly touch.  New studies find that Oxytocin is essential to emotional bonding, reducing stress and building trust and empathy.

“My dream of creating a Snuggle Mobile started more than a year ago when I wanted to find a creative way to promote the health benefits of affectionate, non-sexual touch”, says Luther.  She plans to buy a box truck, cut out the sides to insert windows, and then fill the back with mats, pillows, and plush fabrics to create a warm, welcoming environment.  The truck will have a ramp or lift gate so anyone with a cane or wheelchair will have access as well.  She intends to take the Snuggle Mobile to children’s hospitals, foster care facilities, and nursing homes; as well as enter the Snuggle Mobile in parades, park it at your local farmer’s market, and pull up outside your favorite sporting event.  Luther believes the Snuggle Mobile will give people the opportunity to experience the benefits of snuggling in an open, inclusive setting for all ages.

Luther is currently raising funds to construct the Snuggle Mobile.  You can find out more about the funding campaign at Indiegogo.com/projects/introducing-the-snuggle-mobile. Or, to see the prototype and learn more about the Snuggle Mobile visit the website SnuggleMobile.com, or on Facebook at Facebook.com/thesnugglemobile.

Among Friends, LLC is a social services agency based in Portland, Oregon.  They provide behavior supports to individuals with developmental disabilities and neurological variations throughout Oregon.  Among Friends was founded by Shanya Luther in 2011.