Status update on Gleason Family YMCA Knitting Group

A big thanks go out to the many people who have donated yarn and knitted for us through the years. We are still going fairly strong producing these knitted goods for the less fortunate who live locally.

The Gleason YMCA knitting group was started as a social group of people who like to knit and crochet. Many thanks to all the people who have donated to our group over the last 10+ years.

In the early days of the opening of the Gleason Family YMCA in Wareham, Pat Lockhart made friends with Joan Stopka, who worked at the Welcome Center Desk. She always had a beautiful knitted scarf around her neck or sweater over her shoulders. A discussion was started about possibly organizing a knitting/crochet group at the Y, which led to weekly get together's to work on projects. As time progressed a decision was made to make the group a charitable organization, asking for yarn and/or monetary donations to buy yarn, while also using their own stash of yarn from their closets.

The group of women decided to seek out charitable organizations in Wareham and surrounding communities that might have a need for any handmade articles. These mainly simple, useful things like hats, mittens, scarves, and baby blankets were brought to local groups who were able to provide them to those in need. The group has now grown to 10+ women who meet on Wednesday's at the Y and some who work on items from home. Some of the organizations the group knits for include: Turning Point, Baby Point, coat exchange, & giving donations by suggestion to other groups to help with fundraising efforts. The handmade articles have been sold at the Makepeace Cranberry Festival, MA Children's Relief Annual auction & dinner, along with various Gleason Family YMCA fundraisers. Many of the knitting group also make chemo hats for several hospitals. Several New Bedford charitable organizations have benefited from the knitting groups efforts as well. The group also had donations of knitting kits, which some members have knitted to sell chances for fund raising activities.

The group welcomes new members to join them on Wednesday afternoons, 1 - 2:30 pm, at the Gleason Family YMCA. Email Pat Lockhart at patlock@hotmail.com for further information. If you are unable to attend on Wednesday's you're welcome to work at home on projects to share with the knitting group's donation recipients. The group still has donated yarn and some knitting/crocheting directions to work with new members, but needles and crochet hooks are to be brought to the meetings. If you would like to donate yarn to the group you may leave it in a bag at the Welcome Center Desk at the Y with Pat's name on it.