We now have details to post for our 2010 service project, providing hats, scarves and mittens to children and adults in need:
Members and non-members can knit hats, scarves and mittens or any combination of these and donate the items at any of the monthly meetings this year. Each quarter at a meeting (March, June, October and December) the items that were knit that quarter will be shown at the meetings so people can look at/touch them and get inspired to knit more for the charities. (I hope to get photos to share on the blog, so if you miss a meeting you can still see the fabulous knits that have been donated.)
The charities this year are Parents In Community Action, Inc (PICA) which is a private, non-profit agency designated by the federal government to operate Head Start and Early Head Start programs in Hennepin County. The agency was founded in 1969 by Head Start parents. Today PICA serves nearly 2,500 children and families and offers a variety of programs and services for children and families in addition to Head Start and Early Head Start. To learn more, see their website www.picaheadstart.org
The other charity is the White Earth Reservation Community, which is near Detroit Lakes, Bemidji and Park Rapids. The reservation was established March 19, 1867 with the Mississippi Band. The White Earth Band of Ojibwa has 19,506 enrolled members. To learn more see their website www.whiteearth.com
When knitting for PICA you are knitting for kids, ages 0-5. Any type of yarn and any color are OK.
When knitting for White Earth you can knit for kids, teens or the elderly. They would like items in washable wool or wool/acrylic. They would really like warm felted mittens. It gets cold up there (recorded temps range to minus 51 and the frost can penetrate to a depth of greater than 8 feet).
Questions? Contact Michele Germanson at michminn AT yahoo DOT com.
Here’s a few more photos to inspire you:
(Sorry – it’s a terrible photo.)
Multidirectional Diagonal Scarf
I made this one with the “alternate” ending to make the ends symmetrical. This one is great for self-striping yarns.
Please remember to label your donations with fiber content and washing instructions.
I look forward to next month’s meeting (June 15) so I can see your beautiful knits! Remember that these projects are easy to take along and are good ‘summer’ knitting (no big projects in your lap)!
