Giving, Giving, & Giving Some More

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Thanks for coming to see a sneak-peek into the inner workings of Knits For Needs.. aka... me sitting in my hallway sifting through all of our donated items! :) A couple weeks ago I started going through everything and sorting it all into piles. What we have most of is women's and girls' hats, but we also had some blankets, a teddy bear, a bib, several pairs of booties, a shawl, several scarves, about 20 prayer squares, and two baby sweaters. Here are some pictures of the sorting process.

As you can see, it looks like a total mess, but there was a method to my madness, I assure you. In the picture to the right, you are looking at a huge pile of children's hats, some booties, and a couple blankets and two sweaters. In the other picture you can see the pile of adult hats, most of which are women's.

Look at this super-cute preemie hat, this tiny bear, and cute little bootie along with the other booties in the background! Adorable tiny baby items that will make some babies out there very happy.

So after sorting everything, I determine what is going to hospitals. I had been in touch with a lady at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and she told me they were in need of about 30 baby hats in different sizes. If the items are going to hospitals, they need to be washed because hospital patients are often very sensitive to allergens, plus you certainly would not want any germs on the items. So I very gently wash the items in the washer and dry them in the dryer on the lowest setting. All the items came out great. When I'm sure they are completely dry, I individually bag each item and tag them with a special note from Knits For Needs, which I have included a picture of, although it is a bit difficult to see. I had to take it without the flash because the flash kept reflecting off the bag :)
The box below is currently bound for Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and should arrive by Monday. Included in this box are 2 baby blankets, about 30 hats, about 10 pair of booties, and 1 bib. I'm sure the recipients will love the items we've made for them and I can't wait to hear back from some of them!!

If the items are not going to a hospital or to chemo patients, I do not wash them since they really are clean anyway. (I just take extra special care with the hospital ones) These seen below should have arrived at The Covenant House in Atlanta by now, although I have not heard back from them yet. Included in this box were about 20 hats, 1 shawl, and about 8 scarves. The few men's hats I had went out in this box since most of the homeless youth they provide shelter for are
male.

Currently I am looking for women's and children's homeless shelters somewhere in the US where we can donate more hats. I have contacted several places, including shelters in New Orleans, Chicago, and New York, but have not heard back from anyone yet. I do not send out our items anywhere unless I have spoken to someone there who can assure me the items will make it into the hands of the intended recipients. We put much time, effort, and love into making these items so I make sure they get into the right hands!

Thanks for reading about the wonderful things Knits For Needs is doing! And, as always, thank you to all contributors and supporters. We would not exist without you, or if we did, it would just be me and I surely wouldn't have come up with 380 items by myself! Together, we ROCK!

348!

First of all, I'd like to send out a big THANK YOU to Shanda in North Carolina for donating three baby blankets and two baby hats (the blankets are pictures to the right) and also to Jenny in Scotland for donating 10 prayer squares!! This makes our total items donated this year a whopping 348! The blankets to the right are being shipped to Melinda in Pennsylvania who is collecting blankets for the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit of Sinai Hospital in Baltimore, MD.

On Saturday I will be delivering about 15-20 items, mostly warm hats, to The Covenant House here in Atlanta, which provides temporary housing for homeless youth.

Thank you all for your support and your time that you put into this wonderful cause. Many people wish they could make a difference in the world. Well, we ARE making a difference!

Knits For Needs IN ACTION!

Knits For Needs is really making things happen! Our Ravelry group has really taken the bull by the horns and a few people are taking it upon themselves to head up some special projects for KFN.

Sandi in South Dakota is collecting and delivering items to her local Homeless Veteran's Shelter, which has had an influx of homeless veterans over the past few years and projects growing numbers. They mainly need men's hats and scarves, but could also use things like socks, slippers, gloves, and blankets.

Melinda in Pennsylvania is collecting and donating blankets to the Sinai Hospital in Baltimore, where her son receives treatment from time to time. Melinda says everything there is so white and they need COLOR! :) Blankets are really needed in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit as well as the Hemotology/Oncology Unit. All size blankets are needed and greatly appreciated! Another Raverly member has offered to collect and seam together 6in x 6in squares to make blankets to send to Melinda and Sinai Hospital.

If interested in these projects, first join Ravelry if you haven't already (its awesome!) and join our Knits For Needs group there (which is also awesome!), or you could message me and I'll put you in touch with the person you wish to contact. Email: knitsforneeds@gmail.com

Knits For Needs, as always, is working on reaching that goal of 400 items donated in 2009! I'm happy to say, I believe we are going to make it. Our count stands at around 335 and we have many people who are in the process of sending their items in. Plus, the above projects DO count in that total, of course. We are still collecting prayer squares, hats, gloves, mittens, blankets, scarves, socks, slippers, toys.... hey, anything you can knit or crochet for someone in need is appreciated! I am about to send a few hats and some fingerless mitts to a lady who just found out she has cancer. One of our Ravelry friends alerted us about her situation and this is just the sort of thing KFN loves to do, help those in need. We also will be donating to Rescue Atlanta, a homeless shelter, and possibly to NSPIRE, a homeless outreach that will actually pick up the items from my house, which will cut down on shipping costs. First I will talk to them to make sure the items WILL get into the hands of those in need. You know me, I like to be certain of that! We will also be donating to several other places throughout the US. If you have places in mind, please let me know.

THANK YOU once again for heeding our call for monetary donations to help with shipping!! And remember, clicking the ads here on the blog does earn us money. It is up to almost $40!

Have a wonderful day, and, as always, thank you for supporting our awesome cause!