500 Blog Posts!

PLEASE VOICE YOUR OPINION IN THE POLL TOP RIGHT SIDEBAR

Please enjoy this beautiful picture of Pink Mallows from my backyard to as we celebrate post number 500! Though this picture is several months old, flowers now being gone with the weather turning cold; I wanted to share it with you as a way to say THANK YOU! 500 blog posts represents how much you all have done, how much you've knitted, how much you've crocheted, and how much you've loom. It represents how much you all have donated to those less fortunate. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Let's keep up the good work with our skilled hands, spreading word about the need. You are all AWESOME!

Have you read the important blog updates..........click HERE

Have you read about the increase in our mission .......click HERE

Have you read about the shocking fact about homelessness.......click HERE

Have you read about " Operation Welcome Home".....click HERE

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

Beautiful Bounty from Bunny

Many thanks Bunny (Lynda) for donating your beautiful bounty. Bunny's work is always fabulous, soft, and so well made. 6 Knitted hats, 2 scarves (one is a keyhole scarf), hand warmers, and personal care items. Bunny has been one of our longest running supporters here which is so greatly appreciated. Keep up the good work, and MANY THANKS for your on going support.

This is post #499.......can you believe we're that close to hitting 500 posts here on this blog! Very cool, each of those post represents thoughtful donations of knitting, crocheting, looming etc. Thank you all.

**September is Scarf Month, and we're having another contest.
Running til October 8th (1 month), I'll toss names into a hat for everyone who donates a scarf for a teen or adult...male or female. Feeling like we need to bump those numbers a bit and will draw the winning name from the hat and send out another box of yarn. Contests are fun. We've had several fun, productive, and successful contests. Every scarf donated for a teen or adult (at least 5 inches wide and 5 feet or longer please), will qualify. **

2011 Donations:

Scarves 289+2=291
Hats 591+1=592
Mitts 133
Socks 115
Squares 454
Rain Ponchos 80
Cotton Washcloths 308
Sweaters/Poncho's 6
Slippers 87
Afghans 33 (2 sent to our friends at Pine Street)
Misc Items I've not counted misc items like all the personal care items, the neck warmers, and the head bands.

I launched a program called Welcome Home a couple of days ago. This is in connection our recent mission expansion that includes The Homeless Families Foundation in the list of those we help. If you've not yet read the post about The Foundation, please do, HERE.

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

Can you Quess Who This Donation is From?

For those of you've who've frequented the blog, I'm betting you can quess who this donations from without my telling you! Clues are bright colors, hats trimmed with a coordinating color, and wait for it......signature button flower decorations! Right you are, it's our friend and fellow crocheter RoseMarie. 4 matching hat and scarf sets the young girls will enjoy, pair of slippers and personal care items. Very nice indeed.

Thank you RoseMarie for your thoughtful donation, and your on going support.

This is post #498.......can you believe we're that close to hitting 500 posts here on this blog! Very cool, each of those post represents thoughtful donations of knitting, crocheting, looming etc. Thank you all.

Have you read about our Welcome Home Program? Click HERE, please

**September is Scarf Month, and we're having another contest.
Running til October 8th (1 month), I'll toss names into a hat for everyone who donates a scarf for a teen or adult...male or female. Feeling like we need to bump those numbers a bit and will draw the winning name from the hat and send out another box of yarn. Contests are fun. We've had several fun, productive, and successful contests. Every scarf donated for a teen or adult (at least 5 inches wide and 5 feet or longer please), will qualify. **

2011 Donations:

Scarves 285+4=289
Hats 587+4=591
Mitts 133
Socks 115
Squares 454
Rain Ponchos 80
Cotton Washcloths 308
Sweaters/Poncho's 6
Slippers 86+1=87
Afghans 33 (2 sent to our friends at Pine Street)
Misc Items I've not counted misc items like all the personal care items, the neck warmers, and the head bands.

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

Brighter Days Ahead

3 Cotton Washcloths, 4 hats, and 2 neck warmers means brighter days ahead for the folks receiving this donation. Our friend Sally in NJ has done it again with her knitting needles. Look at these warm, soft, darling hats! 4 fewer people will have cold heads.......that's awesome. The cotton washcloths have been sooooooooo well received at the various shelters folks. Seems like a simple thing, but a special, washcloth for you. One that makes your skin feel better. The power of a special shower....truly is more then I can express through words on a blog post.

Thank you Sally for your on going support.

As I type this blog post I realized this is post #497.......can you believe we're that close to hitting 500 posts here on this blog! Very cool, each of those post represents thoughtful donations of knitting, crocheting, looming etc. Thank you all.

**September is Scarf Month, and we're having another contest.
From now until October 8, I'll toss names into a hat for everyone who donates a scarf for a teen or adult...male or female. Feeling like we need to bump those numbers a bit and will draw the winning name from the hat and send out another box of yarn. Contests are fun. We've had several fun, productive, and successful contests. Every scarf donated for a teen or adult (at least 5 inches wide and 5 feet or longer please), will qualify. **

2011 Donations:

Scarves 285
Hats 583+4=587
Mitts 133
Socks 115
Squares 454
Rain Ponchos 80
Cotton Washcloths 305+3=308
Sweaters/Poncho's 6
Slippers 86
Afghans 33 (2 sent to our friends at Pine Street)
Misc Items I've not counted misc items like all the personal care items, the neck warmers, and the head bands.

If you've not yet read the post about The Homeless Families Foundation, please do, HERE.
AND Yesterday, we launched TheWelcome Home Program HERE

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

Project WELCOME HOME

Operation WELCOME HOME with above picture/badge will be an on going program. It will utilize the squares you all have sent and will send (Give a Square). Afghans will continue to be assembled and donated; just as we have done through our Give a Square Program. Previously we donated to Faith Mission for those living in temporary housing. We will now be switching gears to donate these afghans to Homeless Families Foundation. These afghans will be given as a house warming gift to the families as they move from The Homeless Families Foundation Shelter (temporary housing for 3 months) into "their" home/apt. These afghans will be a true welcome home, and welcome to your new life.

Families receive assistance with education, food, lodging and guidance through out their stay in temporary housing to help with the transition to permanent housing-employment etc.

The next 3 families slated to move from their temporary to permanent housing are:

1. Mom, Dad, and 2 little boys
2. Mom and a teenage daughter
3. Dad and 2 kids (age 2 and 4)

With what we already had ready to go, we've supplied 2 adult ghans, and one ghan suitable for the teenage daughter in family 2. We will continue to try and be informed about a couple of families at a time. Current thinking is once we get rollin and have some extra on hand for them, they will have the ability to select appropriate ghans to go in their house warming package. Until we reach the extra stage, I'll be working towards specific families based on what we have here to assemble.

The volume of squares is still quite good. Therefore I do still need to restrict them to specific months. Our next month for collection here will be December 2011. If however, I start running low on your squares as I get more ghans assembled, I may alter that.

PLEASE read the guidelines for squares in Give a Square before sending your donations. If you have squares that don't meet those guidelines, and or are mailing a box of other goodies here and want to include squares.......please send me a quick email so we can make appropriate arrangements.

**September is Scarf Month, and we're having another contest.
From now until October 8, I'll toss names into a hat for everyone who donates a scarf for a teen or adult...male or female. Feeling like we need to bump those numbers a bit and will draw the winning name from the hat and send out another box of yarn. Contests are fun. We've had several fun, productive, and successful contests. Every scarf donated for a teen or adult (at least 5 inches wide and 5 feet or longer please), will qualify. **

2011 Donations:

Scarves 285
Hats 583
Mitts 133
Socks 115
Squares 454
Rain Ponchos 80
Cotton Washcloths 305
Sweaters/Poncho's 6
Slippers 86
Afghans 33 (2 sent to our friends at Pine Street)

Received unidentified donation from Seattle, Washington. If you know who that is, please make contact. Thanks!

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!

Hats for the Homeless are so Appreciated

Received unidentified donation from Seattle, Washington. If you know who that is, please make contact. Thanks!

Thank you DaMary for your crocheted hat for Ohio's Homeless. It is very much appreciated. Hats are so important. Think how much warmer you are when you wear a hat, and have your ears covered. Think how much better you feel when you head is dry. A hat helps get someone in need from having a wet cold head from snow, ice, and sleet. We're providing hats for men, women, and children; so hats of all sizes are needed and very much appreciated. Warm hats that fit a large man, down to school age children. I'm pleased our hat numbers have been good. Giving us the ability to help several schools, kids and moms in free clinics, men and women living on the street, men and women in shelters, and families living in family shelters too.

Don't over look the importance of knitting, crocheting, or looming 1 hat. The power of ONE is awesome.

A few days ago I posted a rather shocking statistic about 9 years old being the average age of homelessness nationally. If you didn't get a chance to read that post, please do. Click HERE. We have through our last couple of years collected more hats for kids then adults, mittens too. These items for kids have been donated to the shelters and the 2 free clinics and directly to some schools. I wanted to re-state that we have been donating for children's benefit so folks didn't get the impression we were only donating to adults and totally switch gears to only making items for children. To date, the group we collect the least for is adult men.

I will be launching a program called Welcome Home tomorrow, so please keep checking in for the post. This will be tied into our recent mission expansion that includes The Homeless Families Foundation in the list of those we help. If you've not yet read the post about that, please do, HERE.

**the large amounts I stocked piled during the summer months donations have been delivered to Rae for the clinics and Bridge Folks, Lynn for Holy Family, and Karie for The Homeless Families Foundation.** It was wonderful to have such a nice stockpile on hand and be able to beat the weather turning cold. Yesterday it was 43 here for a good portion of the day. Folks, that's only 11 degrees above freezing!! So please keep those hooks and needles busy.

**September is Scarf Month, and we're having another contest.
From now until October 8, I'll toss names into a hat for everyone who donates a scarf for a teen or adult...male or female. Feeling like we need to bump those numbers a bit and will draw the winning name from the hat and send out another box of yarn. Contests are fun. We've had several fun, productive, and successful contests. Every scarf donated for a teen or adult (at least 5 inches wide and 5 feet or longer please), will qualify. **

2011 Donations:

Scarves 285
Hats 582+1=583
Mitts 133
Socks 115
Squares 454
Rain Ponchos 80
Cotton Washcloths 305
Sweaters/Poncho's 6
Slippers 86
Afghans 33 (2 sent to our friends at Pine Street)

All donations regardless of size and number are valued. All donations are appreciated, and all donations keep someone warm. We help, one stitch at a time. YOU truly DO make a difference. THANK YOU!