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Customer Projects - Get Inspired
Would you like to share a project that you have made from our yarns or
our patterns? Hundreds of thousands of people who care
about your favorite craft will see your work. Any submissions,
particularly original ones are welcome, as long as the project was
made from Lion Brand Yarn.
Click to post it!
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Sharing the Warmth While Volunteering
Created By: Susan Aldous
Several years ago, I read an article in a women's magazine about volunteering. I had been wanting to do some volunteer work for quite some time, but didn't see how I could find the time, especially if it involved traveling any significant distance, or work on a computer, which is what I already do all day as a medical transcriptionist. This article gave some tips for finding the best way to utilize one's talents and interests to find an ideal volunteer situation, and I was struck by the suggestion to "volunteer by doing something you already love to do." I have been knitting and crocheting since I was a child, so felt that I had the necessary skills to produce a handcrafted item that I would be proud to donate, if only I could find someplace to do this.
I contacted the Volunteer Services Department at Fletcher Allen Health Care, where I work, and their response was very enthusiastic. They have accepted, praised and supported every item I have made, and have even made some special requests, such as forwarding the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit's request for some tiny blankets and hats, which I am thrilled and proud to be able to supply. I was honored to receive a personal note from one of the nurses in Labor and Delivery thanking me for my efforts and describing how much it meant to new parents with a premature infant to have a hat and blanket to wrap their child in that was just the right size.
Over the past few years I have made dozens of hats and blankets for preemies, full-size afghans for chronically ill patients or patients being discharged to a nursing home who would otherwise have very few things of their own to take there, lap robes for patients in the Rehabilitation Unit who have just been through surgery and are confined to a wheelchair, and even "door prize" afghans for the Fletcher Allen volunteers who attend the annual Volunteer Services Appreciation Luncheon held every spring.
What started out as a way to volunteer from home while enjoying my hobbies (I generally sit in front of the television while I knit or crochet) has become a personal and passionate effort to try to better the lives of at least a few of our patients in a small way while letting them know that someone out there, a volunteer, cares enough about them to have crafted something special just for them.
As long as I am able to knit and crochet, I will continue to do this type of volunteer work. It has been amazing to me how my love of knitting and crocheting has made a bit of difference in the lives of some of our patients, while at the same time allowing me to indulge in two of my favorite crafts.
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