A recent addition to national holidays, I Love Yarn Day was created by the Craft Yarn Council as a way to celebrate fiber arts and the joy of fashioning with your own hands. This year the annual holiday falls on October 12, but the entire month and winter season is a great time to get involved in organizations that need your knitting and crocheting skills.
There are many women's shelters, children's care centers and hospitals right here in Grand Junction that accept donations, but if you aren't certain where to send the finished pieces, here are five charities that you can consider partnering with today.
One of the most recognizable charities, Project Linus brings comfort to children in crisis around the nation by providing them with their own security blankets. A drop-off location based here in Grand Junction makes it easy for those interested to become a blanketeer. Information and free patterns for knitted and crocheted afghans are available on the website.
An offshoot of Hope 2 Others, Hats 4 Hope collects hats, booties and blankets to help prevent hypothermia in newborns in developing countries. Though many countries near the equator have warm climates, the mountain regions and annual rainy seasons can make the temperatures dangerously cool for infants. Since humans lose a large amount of body heat through their heads, donated hats can help protect babies and potentially save their lives.
Founded by the National WWII Museum as a way to thank our soldiers for their service, Knit Your Bit has been distributing handmade scarves to veteran's centers, hospitals and organizations for over a decade. Volunteers are encouraged to use neutral and patriotic colors in their creations, and instructions for themed patterns are on the organization's website.
Knots of Love provides caps to over 550 hospitals, cancer treatment centers and oncology offices around the country. The caps offer warmth and comfort to patients who have lost their hair due to illness, injuries or conditions such as Alopecia. Adding personal touches such as patterns and textures for boys and colorful flowers and bows for girls make these caps fun for both the crafter and recipient.
Like Knots of Love, Crochet for Cancer seeks to give reminders of love and cheer to chemo patients. The organization has branches in the United States, Canada and Australia, including one in Colorado. It offers free Scripture tags to attach to your items, and in addition to caps, it accepts things such as teddy bears, lap blankets, prayer shawls and gloves.
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