The fingers of the Knit for a Cause group are ever-busy. One knitter is working brown yarn into a tiny teddy bear. Another is making quick progress on a car seat blanket. A lone crocheter has two loose-weave bags already finished in front of her, and the early stages of another on her hook.
“We like to have a goal,” explained Pat Cuff, as she crochets her market bag. “We make a lot of different things for a lot of different causes.”
The group, which meets weekly at Greenville’s Chamberlain Free Public Library to chat and knit – for a good purpose.
The group has knitted caps and mittens for local hospitals and for the nurse in the school district to give out to children who don’t have them come wintertime. They have made dolls and teddy bears that are sent to Africa, wool caps that go to active service members in Afghanistan, and pet blankets that go to animal shelters.
“We’re quite varied, when you stop to think of everything that we’ve done,” admits group member Jean Lambert.
“We like to do different things. It gets very boring to do the same thing all year,” added AnneMarie LaBossiere.
For most of the ladies, knitting has been a hobby for most of their lives. Anne Marie Bouley recalled being taught to knit by her mother-in-law, a hobby she took up to keep herself occupied while her husband was fighting in Germany during World War II.
“I remember the first thing I ever knit,” she said. “It was a pale yellow pull over. I remember it so clearly. The day my husband left to go overseas, I made so many mistakes that I had to take it apart. I guess I shouldn’t have tried to knit that day.”
“My friends all said it was very forgiving, so I decided that was for me,” joked Jean Lambert.
But what is usually a hobby takes on special meaning when they know that their creations are going to make a difference for someone, the group said.
“It’s like the name says,” said Bouley. “We knit for a cause. You’re knitting something for someone who needs it.”
And while they are doing good, they are able to share the camaraderie that comes when you have a group of friends with an obvious shared interest.
“We look forward to coming,” said member Alina Alix. “We get to see everyone’s baby pictures and grandparent brag books. We’re all friends.”
The group meets at the Greenville Chamberain Free Public Library on Tuesdays at 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. The group has needles, crochet hooks and yarn available, and invite both new and experienced knitters and crocheters to join them. They are willing to instruct those with no experience.