Wool on Sunday

 When I retired in 2011, I joined a group called Knitting for Brisbane’s Needy ( K4BN). This group made items of warm clothing for distribution by various groups and charities who give support to the needy in the community. As well as warm clothing, knitted and crocheted blankets and quilts, the group provided toiletries, sewn garments, knitted, crocheted or sewn toys and various other items such as school supplies that could help make people’s lives a little happier. The group had been started by Karen Croke who had seen a need in the community to help community organisations who endeavored to help the plight of the needy and disadvantaged in not only Brisbane, but also Queensland wide. Karen was helped by her husband Peter and I believe the group started with just a few people but the numbers increased as the word spread. 

The group had a number of Knit and Natter groups, which provided a social gathering as well as a collection point for donations. Over the last 16 years the group has distributed hundreds of thousands of items. 

At one stage in the last 10 years, I was a member of 5 Knit and Natters. One in a private home was disbanded about 5 years ago and a new venue was never found. Then in recent years I’ve had more calls on my time to do ‘Grandma Duty’ so not so many K&Ns for me. 

I’ve made lots of new friends over these years, been given lots of ideas and patterns by others and have had a thoroughly enjoyable time. 

But a few years ago, illness struck Karen…a severe illness at that. Then early this year Peter was also struck down by illness. 

So it really wasn’t a big surprise that in April this year it was announced that K4BN would be wound up. It was obviously a big decision and not one made lightly or without much soul searching. 

In a conversation with Peter, he indicated to me that they had decided to completely close and not merely do a handover to someone else to run this completely voluntary organization. In the 16 years he and Karen had built up a well deserved reputation of being reliable, as well as being supportive, compassionate and caring towards those who were doing it tough in our communities. They feared that if run/managed by others who didn’t have the same commitment to the needy, then the reputation they had built up would be tarnished. They just didn’t want to run that risk. 

Sure enough, after that announcement they were inundated with offers to take over. Eventually Karen wrote a post which I copied and saved at the time because it really showed how much this couple had done over the years…a lot of it, quietly in the background. I’ve masked the name of the member, who had suggested how the group should be run as Karen addressed this to her. 

So here we are in September and that means we are having our last K4BN Knit and Natters in these next few weeks. But that’s not the end of this story. Friendships have developed and even though some groups will disband, many of us are being ‘rebranded’ 😜 and will continue to meet regularly and will continue to  make items for needy people. But it will be on a much smaller scale as each group will make lists of community groups we’d like to help. 

For example my favourite K&N group at Albany Creek will now become ‘Knit, Crochet, Donate’ (KCD) Albany Creek and our ‘sister group’ is KCD Strathpine. We’ve had a meeting where we discussed the charities we’d like to support and we’ll only make what the charities need. The Albany Creek Library agreed to continue to let us use the meeting room for free as long as we donated to local charities…too easy! 

Many of us members have friends and family who have supported us by making and donating items to K4BN over the years and I’m forever grateful to these lovely people who have given me the most beautiful and useful items to pass on to K4BN. Hopefully this relationship will continue albeit scaled down somewhat. One thing KDC decided on, no fundraising so I won’t be pestering friends and relatives to buy raffle tickets any more! 😜

So wow! This post has been very wordy but it’s a post I felt needed to be written. 

Here’s a photo of Karen, such an inspiration to so many of us. Not only for her amazing compassion but also her dignity and determination as she lives with an illness that has taken so much of her energy 

, faculties, independence and mobility. 

Karen and Peter decided that despite closing down, that this year from September to the end of November they would accept items that could be used as Christmas gifts to the charities that the group usually supported. So I’ll finish the post with some photos of past years where members were packing the famous K4BN mini Christmas stockings. 

Goodbye K4BN and best wishes to Karen and Peter as they spend more time with their daughters and grandchildren. 

Wool on Sunday...

Once again I'm joining in with Janine from The Rainbow Hare blog for Wool on Sunday, where all things ' yarny' are written up in a post. This month Janine has posted a number of projects including the cutest little toy, Peter Mouse. There is also a pretty little cardi and a market bag...
In July's W.O.S I wrote about the projects ( 2 knitted throws) that I hoped to have ready for donating to the annual parish art show...one was basically finished and I posted a photo in the blog post and one was just started. Good news, both were finished in time! The second throw was that old favourite of mine, the chevron garter stitch pattern, and it was done in my favourite colours.

More about those 2 projects in my post about the art show which is coming up soon!

So after those 2 items were finished, it was time to get to work on making blankets out of all the donated squares I had been given by some very generous people. I hadn't had much time over the previous few months to work on those charity blankets, so it was a case of 'knuckling down' and catching up. There were bags and bags of lovely crocheted squares...


By the time I had joined squares to make 5 blankets, I thought to myself that I couldn't face making many more. But the next day, I was back there joining them. In just over a week, I made 15 blankets...I'd built up momentum and was on a roll...until all but 2 squares had been made into blankets. And I also had my little helper...

It's always better when there is someone with you keeping you company...
On Sunday night I stacked up the blankets for a photo...here are 14

 

When we put the 15th one on the pile...over it tumbled!

So these have all been packed in 2 big bags and are ready to hand over to K4BN for distribution to needy people. At any time of the year there is always a demand for blankets, especially for those forced to sleep rough.

Oops! Where did they all come from? 😉 (Wool on Sunday)

Today I gathered together in one place all the squares that a number of lovely people have recently knitted or crocheted ready for me to join into blankets for K4BN.

Hmmm...There's a few! 😉

Just a few are my handiwork...either making little donated squares larger by a few more rounds or a few started from scratch. That's what I do at Knit and Natters. 

So I would like to 'order' some rainy days where I can sit under the fan ( or the aircon) and just turn squares into blankets...I always find it so satisfying. It will be lovely having a big bundle of blankets early next year, all ready for when the requests for warm blankets start to come in later in the year.

So many people knit or sew for K4BN and today we were given 52 Trauma Teddies that were knitted by a lovely lady called Val. My friend Helen took a photo...it is amazing! 

A big thank you to Val!
Linking with Wool on Sunday on the Rainbow Hare blog.

Wool on Sundays...

Once again, joining in with Janine over at the Rainbow Hare blog to write about anything which relates to yarn.https://rainbowhare.com/

 Well I haven't done much of anything with yarn in this last week, so instead I'm posting some 'old pics'. 

Over the last few years, I've found my 'niche' in K4BN...joining donated squares into blankets ready to be handed out to the needy. And sometimes I like to have a bit of fun when I take photos to share with other members of Knitting for Brisbane's Needy. ( I also like to take photos so that the donors of the squares can see how important their knitted or crocheter squares are in providing blankets for those who would otherwise be cold.) 

I call it 'yarn bombing', but by the definition of Magda Sayeg, the 'founder/inventor' of yarn bombing, strictly speaking my version isn't...but that's never stopped me! Lol. 

Magda describes yarn bombing as...'When you take knitted or crocheted material out into the urban environment, graffiti style or more specifically, without permission and unsanctioned'. 

Another definition that I once found by 'googling' was...'

A yarn bomb is form of street art where yarn in any form (knit, crochet, latch hook, cross stitch, amigurumi, or simply wrapped) is attached to an object in the public environment.' 

So, back to my attempts at yarn bombing; I drape the blankets over railings or furniture...anywhere at my house where I can display them for photos.

Over the railing on the front verandah...

Another time I draped the finished blankets over the railings on the side veranda...

And one time when it was raining and I wanted to get a photo, I arranged the blankets on the modular

 ( sectional) lounge...

I have some bags of donated squares at the moment which are just waiting to be turned into blankets, so I wonder where I can drape these when they are finished...? Hmmm...we have a long section of hedge at the eastern side of our property...now that's a possibility. 😊

Handing over the 'goods'...

Today DH helped me load all this into his car...

And we took it up to the town of Glasshouse, just north of Brisbane. This is where the Knitting for Brisbane's Needy's 'headquarters' is; specifically the storage shed.

The shed is the domain of Peter, who is the husband of Karen, the founder of K4BN.

Everything is organised on the shelves...behind Peter you can see the shelves of the toiletries that are packed in the 'hygiene packs' that the group hands out each year...numbering in the thousands! On the right hand side of the photo, not quite in the photo, are shelves of shampoos which were selling out recently at $1 so the group purchased a lot!

So what did DH and I take up to Glasshouse in all those bags and boxes...

Rugs made from squares...

The boxes and bags also contained, beanies, bed socks, scarves, nappies, soaps,toiletries,cosmetics, 

A few items in indigenous colours, more beanies, scarves, crocheted slippers/bed socks, baby blankets made from polar fleece and flannelette, and some sports socks.

I had spent a bit of time during the week, tying bed socks together in their pairs...it's amazing how easily pairs get lost so we tie them together until they are handed out.

The group were given a big bag of items from the school community of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart at Darra. As well as beanies and baby cardis, these lovely people gave us bag and beanie sets...all knitted. 

Here's a closer look at the lining of the bags...all the bags were lined! Absolutely beautiful. My job was just tying the beanie and bag sets together. 

All the items I handed in today are the result of lots of people helping in what ever way they can. Such people power is very impressive.

Peter was concerned that we didn't leave empty handed, especially as his and Karen's lounge room had 2 huge boxes full of donated yarns...

I brought home a big bag of yarn for my wonderful 'out workers' ...I'll be around to their places in the next week or so handing out yarn! Lol

Zillmere Gathering...

The last Tuesday of the month there is a Knit and Natter at Zillmere Community Centre for K4BN members. I looked forward to this because my little car was jam packed with donations from friends and family. These items needed to be handed over so they could be distributed to the needy...and that would happen at Zillmere! 

Bags of goodies filled the back seat...

And the boot (trunk)...

And the front passenger seat was filled with items too! (No photo)

That day the staff at the Community Centre had allocated our meeting room to another group...a small group from a state government department. We had to cram into a tiny room, just marginally larger than a single garage. The ladies didn't like that so we had some help to take the tables outside...and then we followed with our knitting and our chairs!

I didn't get everyone in the photo but outside was so much nicer than being crammed inside. The weather was beautiful too...a mild autumn day!

Now it wasn't just me with donations...just about everyone had a 'heap of items' to hand in.

The next photo shows the donations which had all be sorted, noted and then re packed ready to travel to the group's warehouse in Glasshouse. (Town north of Brisbane) 

There were well over 300 items handed in that day. 

We found out also that day, that approximately 850 knitted/crocheted blankets have been handed out to the needy, by the group, so far this year. Phew! That is some achievement! 

This week thousands of warm items and toiletries have been delivered by K4BN to Warwick, Stanthorpe and Roma. ( these are rural towns) Last Sunday, and Wednesday of last week, thousands of items were handed out by the group to needy people in Ipswich and Brisbane respectively. And I keep joining squares....!

That raffle...

Yesterday, after months of working behind the scenes, we had the drawing of the K4BN Mothers' Day Raffle, one of the two fundraising ventures that the group does each year. 

We had 33 prizes...here they are lined up in order, ready for the draw...

My co-organiser Helen, not only wrapped the large majority of the prizes, but also made these wonderful labels for each prize...very professional! :-) great job Helen!

It took quite a while to draw all 33 prizes but that was just the beginning of our next lot of work...we then had to organise how the winners would receive their prizes. In the next photo Helen and I are looking through our lists and organising where, when and who for delivery of prizes. 

Luckily most of the winners attend the various Knit and Natters so many prizes could be handed over that way. Some will be delivered personally by members and a few will go by mail. We don't have the final total of monies raised from this raffle, but we estimate it would be somewhere over $800...very pleasing and a great help in buying toiletries for the 'hygenie' packs that the group distributes to the homeless, those in women's refuges and any other needy group. 

And look who won something! 

 

And 2 of the lovely ladies from Sunday Stitchers, Marilyn and Maureen also won a prize. This group are always so supportive of K4BN, so it was great to see some of them win something. 

Some generous people...

I sometimes joke that I have some 'out workers'...friends, family and sometimes complete strangers, who hand over items to me which they have made or collected from others. These items are for Knitting for Brisbane's Needy, who then distributes to those in need.

A few weeks ago, DH and I decided that it might be a good idea to take a load of these items up to 'headquarters' rather than wait for the next knit and natter...and besides, the load was too much for Mitzi Micra, my little car. Parts of Queensland and the Northern Territory have been hit by cyclones in recent weeks, so there has been increased demand for the items that K4BN distributes. 

Here's some of the items that DH and I were able to hand in, thanks to the generosity of 'my out workers'....

From Marlene in Tassie...

Marlene describes herself as a 'gatherer' for the group, but she also makes a lot of things too. The teddies are mostly dressed in ponchos crocheted in indigenous colours...beautiful!

From my sister in law...15 baby and children quilts...

All beautifully made using lovely bright fabrics.

In a big surprise, I got a phone call from a lady who crochets a lot of beanies for K4BN, and she said she had some knitted blankets for the group. These blankets had come from the Oncology Unit of the local private hospital. Patients and others are encouraged to knit squares and these are then sewn into blankets for charity...and K4BN was chosen to get this lot...absolutely amazing!

I also draped all these blankets over my old cane lounge to get photos...

And I got back to work and finished joining squares and weaving in all the 'ends' to finally make 15 blankets...all from donated squares. ( a few squares made by me...but only a few) The collage shows 16 but I repeated one photo to fill all the squares! :-)

Thank you also to Helen Mc, Toni Mc and Irene N, for the items you've given me to pass on to K4BN. 

Day 4...

Thank you for the lovely comments on my Giveaway posts. Today, I have something for the people who love to knit or crochet. 

This Patons yarn is so soft and has little sequins threaded throughout. It knits and crochets up beautifully, and one ball goes a long way. I have knitted lacy scarves with this yarn, but the first time I  ever saw this yarn it was being crocheted into a scarf...and looked lovely. 

Today's Giveaway is for 2 balls of Patons Lace. 

One more Giveaway tomorrow and this one features the work of an Aussie and fellow blogger. Comments can continue to be left on all 5 posts right up until Monday, January 19, 7pm, EST (Australia) 

Talking of knitting/crocheting...I had set aside time after Christmas into January, to continue to join donated knitted/crocheted squares into blankets for Knitting For Brisbane's Needy. I had put that ongoing task aside during the latter months of 2014, and having not quite 400 crocheted squares sitting idle in my sewing room, something had to be done. Once I got started after DH came home from hospital, I've been on a rollL lol. The ends still have to be neatened off but 10 single bed size blankets have been made. 

I have enough squares to make 3 more blankets out of the crocheted ones that have been donated. And then, there are the knitted squares...about 200 of those to join as well! :-)

The Raffle...

The charity knitting group that I belong to, Knitting for Brisbane's Needy, doesn't get government funding so raffling donated prizes is a way of raising money for the group. And so it was that I found myself working behind the scenes on our Christmas 2014 Raffle.

I had stepped up and taken over from a member who had done a brilliant job running raffles...both in providing prizes herself but also using her communication skills to keep the momentum rolling and the enthusiasm for selling tickets on high alert. Another member had assisted her and this member had wrapped prizes beautifully ready for the draw....hmmm...hard acts to follow! Lol. I had previously run very small raffles when I was the coordinator of an Outside School Hours Care Centre in the late 80s to mid 90s, but this would be different.

K4BN members are spread far and wide. Some members don't attend Knit and Natters, some members don't use the Internet, some members use Facebook and others use the Yahoo Group Forum to stay in touch. So quite a disparate grouping that I needed to get information about the prizes to. Did I mention prizes? Well we ended up with 38 prizes; absolutely amazing! 

Some of the prizes....

I posted albums showing each prize on my personal FB page, the group's closed FB page, in the Yahoo group's page and at any Knit and Natters I went to, I showed photos on my iPad. I'm aware that there were many people who weren't able to see the photos and possibly I might need to review my decision to not make multiple 'prize posters' for the Knit and Natters I don't attend. 

Some more prizes...

With so many prizes and my inexperience at running a larger raffle I pretty soon realised that organisation was the key, as well as regular communication to members. I regularly updated the prize list and the photo albums as more prizes were given. And of course, regular public acknowledgment and thank yous to the donors was important. 

As the time for the draw drew near, I 'tightened procedures' and checked and double checked the prizes I had and chased up on ones promised, but not in my 'hot little hands' yet. So all prizes were numbered and labelled with a description and the name of the donor. 

Two nights before the draw, everything was checked again and packed in 2 large boxes which were also labelled with the numbers of the prizes inside. DH helped me pack my little Mitzi Micra the day before, in case I needed help from my assistant Helen, who has a larger car than my Mitzi...but everything fitted. 

And so it was on Monday December 1 at the Scarborough knit and Natter, we had the big draw! 

Helen helped me put all the prizes in order and within easy reach...

We drew the name and number of the prize first...then drew out the winner from the bucket of ticket butts...my wonderful assistant Helen then read out the details of the winner to my other Assistant, Karen, who was our recorder. Her clipboard sheets had the number and description of each prize and a space to write in the winner and contact details. After Karen had the details, Helen taped the ticket butt to the prize. 

So we repeated this until all 38 prize winners had been drawn. Then it was time for a coffee while we worked out the best way to get prizes to the winners. And then I could relax! Lol.

We had some very excited winners, but best of all, the raffle raised $1275. 

DH even won a prize...

10 balls of Cleckheaton  Silk...wonder what he will make with that? I bought more tickets than DH did, but he won a prize! Oh well...

 I was a bit disappointed that I didn't win one of Jenny's tea cosies :-), but I will get over it! Lol