Turning boredom into community service
"We want wool!" Want to donate to a worthy community service?
During Chiann Fourie’s regular visits to her grandmother at the Care Facility of Luipaardsvlei Home for the Aged in Lewisham, she noticed the many idle hands of the residents.
She discovered that most of them could either knit or crochet, but did not have wool or knitting needles to keep their hands occupied.
After obtaining permission from the management of the Home, she started the Hope Knitting and Crochet Club in May 2011 with a few balls of wool, some knitting needles and a few crochet hooks.
Her goal was to draw residents out of their rooms on a Saturday afternoon to knit and crochet in a group, where they could socialise and relax.
The first group of eight women has expanded to approximately 35 members of both sexes.
Rain or shine, every Saturday Chiann and Marie Ferreira meet with the group and they knit, crochet, chat, drink tea and admire each other’s creations.
Among the items they focus on are hats, scarves, gloves, squares for blankets, bed socks, children’s jerseys, leg warmers and everything in between.
“The love and attention to detail poured into these items are truly amazing and uplifting,” said Marianne Jansen van Vuuren of the Home.
Colours are matched meticulously and striking patterns applied that remind one of years gone by when everything was produced lovingly by hand.
However, knitting and crocheting is not limited to Saturdays only, as the group members work on their own during the week.
Their dedication is also the reason why this group has expanded to such an extent over the past four years as they donate everything they produce to charity.
Over the four years the club has donated truckloads of items to Project Lappies & Lalie (Krugersdorp West), Mug & Tree Organisation, Dr Yusuf Dadoo Hospital’s maternity ward, Orient Hills Day Care and many other charities across Johannesburg and Pretoria.
Chiann tries to involve as many of the club’s members as possible to attend when the items are handed over to the charities.
For the elderly members it is an opportunity to experience the joy and excitement on the faces of the recipients, while for the recipients it is an opportunity to hug and kiss the donors with sincere gratitude for the much-needed items.
“Often there is often not sufficient wool to go around to keep the enthusiastic hands going. With winter on our doorstep we would accept any and all donations of wool gratefully – whether scraps or full skeins. The more wool we have, the sooner we can donate blankets and winter woollies to less fortunate members of the community,” Chiann said.
Anyone wishing to donate wool for this very worthy cause can contact Chiann on 084 507 5145 or Marie on 079 335 8203.
