Lots of updates to share today.
The first of which is that KNITTERS ARE AMAZING PEOPLE.
They are right up there with nuns and first responders.
Thanks to knitters all over the world, we were able raise and donate $10,000 in a short time period to the Sandy Hook Family Fund.
I just sent in the second half of our donation today. Here are the screen caps of our two donation amounts:
I post these to demonstrate that the money we raised is not languishing in an account somewhere, it's already in the hand of fund administrators, who can put it to use. And, while I believe that most of you trust me (or you wouldn't have decided to donate through my site), it's important that trust be maintained.
In an era of scammers and absconders, I want to be the opposite. You are more than free to check the Sandy Hook Family Fund site for our donations or contact them for confirmation.
For those of you wondering, the donation amounts say $5200.25, and the site says $5000. That's because of credit card processing fees. The Family Fund does not want to incur any costs, and its administration is made up of professional accountants, attorneys, and social workers donating their time. They ask donors to cover the credit card processing fees, which I personally paid for. So in order to send in $10,000 and not $9599.50, we needed to donate more than $10K.
I'm so grateful to you for making this possible.
THANK YOU. BLESS YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY.
2. The next order of business is about our blanket squares. We've received quite a few already -- it's so fun to get them and see where they're coming from!
I've received a lot of questions about whether or not we're still going to be making the blankets given that the city of Newtown is overrun with toys and gifts.
The answer is yes, for a couple of reasons.
We're not going to randomly send these addressed to "Newtown, CT" and hope they end up in the right hands. I have a contact who has promised to help make sure they're delivered exactly where they need to go -- NOT a warehouse.
And it's going to take knitters (and us) a while to make all of these. By the time we're done, the donations will have stopped, the media attention will have died down, and the families will be left to deal with the quiet of their homes. People who have lost a loved one often find that the hard work of grieving comes months after the actual death occurs -- long after people have stopped receiving cards in the mail and meals on their doorstep, they're still left with the weight of loss. And they often start feeling forgotten.
We're aiming to get these blankets done in time for Mother's Day, and hope that they will bring even a tiny amount of comfort to the families who need them.
We still need a LOT more 8x8 squares. As a reminder, you can send them to:
Three Irish Girls
Attn: Knitters for Newtown
PO Box 161165
Duluth, MN 55816
We don't have a retail location for you to drop them off at yet (I would love it if a local store owner reading this would be willing to help us with this!), but I will be happy to pick them up from your house if you are local and can't mail them for whatever reason.
3. The next thing is unrelated to Newtown, it's about my travel and teaching schedule.
This Monday, January 7th, I'm going to be speaking to the Duluth Fiber and Handcrafters Guild at 6:30. It's free and open to the public -- come by if you like! It's in the Ruth Maney Room at the Duluth Art Institute. More information here.
Sunday, February 10th, I'm going to be teaching Knitting with Hand Dyed Yarn at The Cat and Crow in Mt. Horeb, WI. There is limited space, so you should contact them to register.
Monday, February 11th, I'm going to be the keynote speaker at the Madison Knitters Guild.
Saturday, March 16th, I'm going to be teaching Intro to Yarn Dyeing at the Duluth Art Institute. Space is quite limited in this workshop!
I can't wait to see all of you!
4. I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. Ours was perfect, in part because first Christmases are the bestest.
Rosie Horsedog is very patient and kind to her Bald Puppy. (That's what Rosie believes Shamrock to be.)
Bald Puppy is 5-3/4 months (I refuse to round up! Refuse!) of sweet, snuggly, adorableness.
May your 2013 be filled with nothing but brown paper packages and warm woolen mittens.
-- Sharon