Today’s topics:
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We delivered 2,500 comfort scarves in December which made our 2011 total 15,000. Incredible, isn’t it!
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Our donations reached 57 shelters: ALL the shelters in S. CA as well as those in Kern and SLO Counties
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Handmade’s volunteers are outstanding
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The shelters appreciate comfort scarves
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News from our affiliates
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The generous contributions from yarn companies and individuals continue
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Handmade received positive publicity from Crochet World, the Alexander Skarsgard fan club, and VolunteerMatch
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Looking back on 2011 and getting started on 2012
And now for the details:
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We delivered 2,500 comfort scarves in December. Honestly, I wondered if we would be able to achieve our goal of 15,000 scarves made and delivered in 2011 given that we were totally out of scarves at the end of November. Even though I never wrote the November Newsletter (because I was busy working on December), I must confess that after our wrapping party before Thanksgiving, we were 70 scarves short of our November goal (also 2,500). I found 30 scarves in various stages of needing repair, got them ready, and was ready to settle for 2,460. But over the weekend, we met our friends, Vicki and Warren Ringer (Vicki leads our San Fernando Valley affiliate) for brunch, and Vicki arrived, carrying 40 scarves that were “extra” for her. I delivered 300 scarves to 1736 Family Crisis Center on Monday, before Thanksgiving. So we reached our goal. Easy!
The reverse occurred in December. At what we thought was our last shipping for the year, our shipping team, Ann Nye, Marie Cortez, Chris Needham and I boxed 1,500 scarves for distribution to our current list of shelters. But we still had plenty of wrapped scarves remaining. What should we do with them? I started calling shelters in San Bernardino, Imperial, Kern and San Luis Obispo Counties. All were thrilled to receive our scarves. Chris Needham and I packed them and shipped them the next day. That brought the total to 14,860. I was willing to accept 14,860 as our total for the year, but, when I sent out an email celebrating the end of our year, a few people wrote back: “Too bad we didn’t reach our goal!” Ouch. That hurt. And we still had wrapped scarves. Luckily I received a call back from a shelter in SLO. They asked for 10. Whew. Every little bit counts. And finally, a shelter in Long Beach said they would take as many as we could send. They had used all the scarves we donated in November in their Thanksgiving baskets and had none left for their Christmas giveaway. We wrapped scarves at Concepts in Yarn on Wednesday evening, and the next day, my husband delivered 130 them. So, we reached 15,000! We made it! What a relief! We ended up sending comfort scarves to 57 shelters, up from 33 at the end of 2010. Throughout 2011, we donated to around 43 shelters, so 57 represents a significant increase.
I always say this, and I hate to sound repetitive, but we couldn’t have done it without all of you. “You” comprises many people and groups. There’s our core group which meets every Wednesday evening at Concepts in Yarn in Torrance. Many in this group not only make scarves, but also make kits, wrap scarves, pack boxes, and support Handmade in all kinds of ways that don’t show in the finished scarf. The photo below shows us at our holiday party at Il Toscano, an Italian restaurant near Concepts in Yarn. I know you can’t see us very well, but you can see we are having a good time. 15,000 comfort scarves! We had a lot to celebrate.
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Sheri Schrier, founder of Happy Hats for Kids in Hospitals, allows Handmade to use her warehouse for our workshop, so we invited her to join our celebration. In a few pre-dinner remarks, she told us the reason she has been so generous to us. She remembered back 20 years when she was starting Happy Hats and she needed space. She faxed many storage companies, asking for space. One of those who called back wasn’t even on her list. She had misdialed one number. And here he was. Her donor. She said “What goes around, comes around” and she felt she had to keep the circle moving. We are very touched and grateful, Sheri.
Judy Gordon, head of outreach and volunteers at Rainbow Services, was our featured speaker. She told us what our scarves mean to the women and children who receive them. We really cannot imagine the desperation and fear that causes a woman to leave her home. She takes her children with her, but nothing else. She has nothing when she arrives at the shelter and the children also have nothing. Our scarves remind them that they are human and valuable. The children, bereft of familiar toys, often use the scarves like security blankets. One of the women at our party was so inspired by Judy’s comments that she said she wanted to make even more scarves. Really!
You can see June Grossberg, owner of Concepts in Yarn, sitting next to me at the table listening to Judy Gordon speak. I can’t say enough about what June has done and continues to do for Handmade. She provides a meeting space, a home for kits, a bin for finished scarves and lots of good advice. June put in a good word for Handmade with her yarn suppliers, and gives me a ticket so I can attend TNNA, where I solicit more yarn and thank those who have already donated. Thank you so much, June!
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In addition to our core group, we have volunteers from our community, from our state, from throughout the US, and even a few from foreign countries. Church groups participate. Adult education attendees contribute. High school teens make scarves to complete their community service requirement for graduation. Female inmates at the Craig County Jail (CO) crochet scarves for Handmade. “You” are everywhere. What all our volunteers have in common is their desire to help abused women change their lives, their willingness to generously give their time (and sometimes their $$$ as well), and their dedication to Handmade. They demonstrate these attributes in the beauty of their finished scarves, their attention to detail, and their determination to get their completed scarves to Handmade by the deadline.
If you want to know how many volunteers actually participate in Handmade, I really can’t tell you. Last year I counted all the thank you letters I had written, and came up with 347 individual contributors. But I didn’t have time to do that this year. The pile of thank you letters is so huge. I’m sure we have at least doubled the number of volunteers. Many have been with Handmade almost from its start. Others have joined this year. Quite a few contribute again and again. Some make 30 scarves a week; others, one a month. Each contribution is important. We reached our goal one scarf at a time. I appreciate each and every one of “You,” no matter how many “You” are! And if I ever do have time to count the thank you letters, I will let you know the number of contributors.
Shelters love our scarves. No surprise. They recognize the love and care that goes into our making of them. Now that we are sending scarves to 57 shelters, I have lots of letters expressing their appreciation. Here are a few samples.
Patima Komolamit, Intervention Program Manager at the Center for the Pacific Asian Family, wrote:
“Yay! The scarves have arrived. I immediately opened the box and once again am amazed by the talent that Handmade. . . has in creating these uniquely beautiful and cozy scarves! We are so thankful for your generosity to our women survivors. . . .”
Heather Frizzell, Women and Family Shelter Manager at Coachella Valley Rescue Mission, wrote: “The joy and encouragement that you gave to the clients at our facility is priceless.”
Richard Kravetz, Executive Director of Domestic Violence Solutions for Santa Barbara County, expresses a similar thought: “Your gift of 50 handmade comfort scarves gives women and children hope to fulfill a dream of a home and life without violence.”
Joanne David, Director of Development at Haven Hills, wrote: “I wish you could have seen the faces of the women in our shelters and counseling clinics when they received the 40 scarves you so generously made and donated. They were so fabulous!”
We received a handwritten note from Laura’s House:
“Thank you for consistently keeping Laura’s House in your thoughts and projects. We are thankful for your continued support and dedication to the women we serve who are escaping their dangerous situations.”
Remember, these are snippets from just a few of the many notes we receive.
Every time I read them, I am convinced that we at Handmade are doing something important, something that actually improves our community. It would be really great to see a decline in the number of women seeking shelter from domestic violence, but since that is not the case, we must continue doing what we can to improve the lives of these victims.
Our affiliates are doing well. Vicki Ringer, organizer of our San Fernando Valley group, donated 80 scarves to Haven Hills in December. In November, in addition to making her usual scarf donation, Vicki encouraged members of her church to give turkeys to the shelter. I love seeing all the ways Handmade infiltrates other aspects of our lives. Vicki says over the year she has probably donated 500 comfort scarves to Haven Hills. Good job, Vicki!
Marg Grieve, organizer of Giving Hands, our affiliate in Nelson, BC, reports that her “helpers have been working hard to make sure we have lots to share. . . . We are expecting a colder than normal winter this year so we are happy we are able to help people stay warm.” Marg also reports that her group has branched out from only making scarves to also making washcloths. “We want to help wherever there is a need.” Marg is a real go-getter.
Renee Hoffman donated another 40 scarves to Interval House in Long Beach CA. Renee leads a small, but dedicated group of knitters.
In San Diego CA, Susan VanWinkle’s group donated 20 comfort scarves to Hidden Valley House in Escondido. Susan prefers to deliver personally and not ship scarves, so her group supplies a few San Diego County shelters and our group takes care of the rest.
Ann Miller, in Colorado, donated 9 scarves to Family Crisis Services in Canon City.
Barb Kochuba’s group in Pittsburgh, donated 2,000 (total for 2011) comfort scarves to shelters throughout Southwestern PA. She remarks again and again her amazement at the growth of her group, the need for scarves, and the generosity of her volunteers. Barb completed a website for her group, Comfort Scarves, and writes a Newsletter every month. Great progress, Barb.
Our affiliated groups have made and distributed lots of comfort scarves. When I say Handmade donated 15,000 comfort scarves in 2011, this does not include their scarves. Just think of what the total would be if I did. I’d faint.
Here’s another stastistic that makes me faint. I did a rough estimate of the number of scarves we delivered since we started in October, 2008. Are you ready? Don’t peek. That number is 31,800! I can keep going. It takes about 3 hours to make each scarf. 31,800 scarves represents more than 95,000 hours of knitting and crocheting, not to mention kit making, wrapping and boxing. Give yourselves a big pat on the back! “You” have done a great job!
Lucky for Handmade, so many yarn companies donate yarn to us. This month, we received exceptional donations from quite a few companies. Classic Elite Yarns sent a box. Coats & Clark sent 5 more boxes. Crystal Palace Yarns, one of our most generous and consistent donors, sent 3 large cases. Knitting Fever sent a box. Mango Moon sent 2 huge cases. Muench Yarns sent 3 huge cases. Thank you so much, Andi, Teresa, Susan, Tymon, Sue, and Kristin. We will use your contributions as soon as we get started again in January. We definitely understand that we couldn’t make our beautiful scarves without your beautiful yarn.
We have wonderful individual donors as well. Julie Billings’ brother-in-law drew her name for their family Christmas party. He asked her what she wanted, and she answered “a donation to Handmade,” which he made in her honor. Annette and Alexander, our “knitting couple” in Germany, not only made their regular monthly donation, but also shipped a box of beautiful yarn. Karen Ing found a sale on Fun Fur (and free shipping) and sent us a box. These few examples just scratch the surface of the generosity of Handmade’s participants.
In December, Handmade experienced a lot of good press. First of all, Crochet World, an online magazine, featured Handmade. Many crocheters wanted to contribute as a result, and I made a lot of crochet kits. I’m not complaining. I always love good publicity and new volunteers. Here’s the link to the article: http://www.crochet- world.com/newsletters.php?mode=article&article_id=2094 The headline says: Charity Benefits Abuse Victims.
Second, the Alexander Skarsgard fan club chose Handmade as its 2011 holiday charity. If you didn’t know, Alexander Skarsgard plays the vampire, Eric Northman, in the HBO series True Blood. Jenna Conde, the fan club’s organizer wrote a very nice piece about Handmade and about the problem of domestic violence. You can see it at: http://askarsgard.com/?p=21817.
Jenna says many members are learning to knit and crochet so they can contribute scarves. They plan to collect their scarves by December 29th and then FedEx them to Handmade. We don’t know how this will turn out, but it is very exciting! International members from Australia and Ireland have already donated $$$.
Finally, VolunteerMatch put its SPOTLIGHT on Handmade. VolunteerMatch is a site that connects people who want to volunteer with groups who need their services. Handmade has received many of its most ardent participants from this valuable resource. Shari Ilsen did two articles: one about Handmade and another about Leslye and Handmade. You can read them at: http://www.volunteermatch.org/. Shari did an excellent job and Handmade has received more than its usual amount of inquiries as a result.
We accomplished a lot in 2011. We made 15,000 comfort scarves and delivered them 57 shelters in CA, and more if you count the donations of our affiliates in the rest of the US and Canada. Our operation has grown as well. We have more kit makers, more scarfers and more volunteers than we did at the end of 2010. What’s next for Handmade?
Many people laughingly ask me if we’re going to expand to 20,000 comfort scarves in 2012. At the moment, I can’t imagine that. If we continue supplying 57 shelters with scarves on a monthly basis, it may be possible. What we need to achieve such a goal is a larger core group, more scarf makers, and especially more money to cover the shipping. Throughout 2011, shipping 1,000 scarves per month cost about $500 each month. In November, not unexpected, the cost increased because we shipped 2,500 scarves. In December, I expect another big increase due to the fact that we shipped to so many shelters farther from us. I’ll let you know in January.
Apparently, Handmade is becoming a real charitable organization. I can tell because we’re always asking for money. Having more money is definitely the key to additional growth. It doesn’t matter how many scarves we make if we don’t have the money to ship them to shelters.
I love Handmade’s success. I am thrilled that we have made and delivered so many comfort scarves. At the same time, I feel very sorry that there are so many abused women need them. I do look forward to another big year, I hope at least as big as 2011 was, working with good people in all walks of life. There are many ways to help in the community. I’m glad that so many of you have chosen to support Handmade as your way to do good. I depend on you. Many thanks.
As usual, if you want to donate scarves (or a small amount of yarn), please mail to:
Handmade Especially for You c/o Leslye Borden
30065 Grandpoint Lane
Rancho Palos Verdes CA 90275
If you want to donate money, please mail a check to the above address or use PayPal.
If you want to donate a large amount of yarn, please ship to:
Handmade Especially for You c/o Happy Hats for Kids in Hospitals
923 Van Ness Ave
Torrance CA 90501
Thanks in advance.
Leslye Borden, Founder
Handmade Especially for You
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