| Items sent by Stitch & Chat Peace Pod members in Port Charlotte, FL to the Ukrainian Women Association. |
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Welcome to 2025, my friends!
At Knitting4Peace we are looking forward to another year of getting your beautiful, handmade items into the hands of the folks who need them most. We are also planning on doing many more community events, because, as part of our mission, we want to connect YOU, the makers to each other. In the summer, we saw a lot of engagement during the Create-A-Thon events and have wonderful turnouts for our Peace Pal Make-A-Longs. This has inspired us to continue to offer more virtual events that can bring us all together to learn and build community. Most of these events will be completely free, like the Peace Pal Make-A-Longs, and will simply require a sign up. We will also be offering some exclusive events for our monthly donors, the Peace Makers. Our first Peace Makers event, which we are opening up for FREE for everyone to try, is on February 13th. You can learn more about our Revolutionary Craftivism workshop below!
If you are interested in becoming a Peace Maker or learning more about our events, go to our website at www.knitting4peace.org. |
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While we are all a part of this beautiful organization in order to give back, many of us, are also seeking community. As an introvert, I know it can be hard to find "your people" but community is important. Even if it is virtual. At Knitting4Peace, our mission is to put life-changing items into the hands of those who need them. But it is also part of our mission to connect makers, and that is what these events will (hopefully) do.
Stay tuned to our social media and upcoming newsletters to learn about events and you can always check our website event tab! With gratitude, Kelly Wulf, Executive Director |
Members of our Ohio Peace Pod received a blessing for their knitted, crocheted, and loomed items in December. Their priest (far left) is 6'8"! |
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Community Member of the Month: Mary Ellen Garrett, former Executive Director of K4P |
Mary Ellen and her husband, Paul |
Mary Ellen Garrett is likely a familiar name to those who have been involved with Knitting4Peace for any length of time and we thought it would be nice to catch up with her and bring an update our community.
Mary Ellen initially connected with Susan McKee, Knitting4Peace’s founder and original director, through the Fair-Trade Market and the Interfaith Peace Pod at the Park Hill Congregational UCC. She was excited to find so many kindred spirits who were interested in making items to share with others and she soon became a regular K4P knitter. Several years after they first met, Knitting4Peace was expanding and Susan asked if Mary Ellen would help with Shipping and Deliveries. Mary Ellen quickly agreed and found it to be truly meaningful work. She loved handling each of the beautiful handmade items as they arrived, selecting special items for each delivery.
Mary Ellen continued in this role when Kathleen Marsh became the director and, later, succeeded Kathleen as the organization’s Executive Director. She was surprised to find she was quite good at fundraising and led Knitting4Peace through growth and some difficult times, especially during the years when Covid impacted so many, requiring new ways of connecting with others. |
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In 2022, Mary Ellen retired from Knitting4Peace and soon moved to southwestern Colorado to a unique co-housing, multi-generational community near Durango. Once there, she happily connected with other knitters and together they formed the Heartwood Peace Pod. This active group enjoys making items for new babies in the community and for local groups, especially the Community Treehouse group, which supports parents from the community. Mary Ellen believes knitting is a great part of mental health. She enjoys trying new patterns and using new colors as she makes a variety of items, including the hats she makes for craft fairs. Always giving back, Mary Ellen generously donates 10% of her craft fair business earnings to Knitting4Peace.
After a lifetime of knitting and contributing so much to others, Mary Ellen’s words of wisdom for others are both brief and profound— “one stitch at a time” and “In this world of so many problems and so much suffering, making items for others is a simple way to provide some comfort.” We are grateful to Mary Ellen for her past leadership of Knitting4Peace and for inspiring us with her ongoing commitment to sharing with others in so many ways. |
Mary Ellen's Heartwood Peace Pod made and delivered 13 baby hats to a local community group "The Community Treehouse". "It's a great resource center for families in our area. They let us know they could use baby hats for "welcome baskets" they give to families with new babies." |
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| Peace Makers Workshop Announcement: Revolutionary Craftivism |
There are many stories of women using knitting, crocheting and quilting to send messages in times of war, to set examples for boosting morale in times of troubles to name just a few of the ways craftivism has been used to accomplish means to a better end.
During this event we are highlighting four of these women in our Peacemaker monthly donation program who have made substantial contributions to the well being of our world, nation, communities and families through their activism, and importantly through their craftivism. We will be discussing Molly Rinker, Eleanor Roosevelt, Sojourner Truth, and Queen Lili'uokalani. The four women who make up our monthly donor program, the Peace Makers!
On February 13, 2025 join us at 4pm (MT) for a lively discussion about these four women and their contributions to craftivism and activism. Find out who they are, their stories, and how they turned their craftivism into activism. Bring a WIP, a cup of tea, glass of wine, your cat or dog and join long time K4P member, Linda Siderius, as she shares stories about these four historic women. This event is free but you must register to participate. This event is free and is an example of the quality programming Knitting4Peace will be offering their monthly donors. We have updated our monthly donor program to provide incentives, like this workshop, for our members to join in our efforts by making a dedicated financial contribution each month.
Moving forward, these workshops will be available to our monthly donors at no cost. If you are not a monthly donor, but wish to learn more, please go to https://www.knitting4peace.org/donate. |
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Who are the Peace Makers?
Peace Makers are friends who choose to make a monthly donation to Knitting4Peace. There are several levels of being a Peace Maker and you can choose what best suits you! Each level is named after a revolutionary crafter who we find inspiring. You can learn all about them HERE
I already donate- why does being a Peace Maker matter?
Monthly donations, no matter the size, are what sustain K4P. It is regular, consistent revenue that we can rely on and utilize each month. We appreciate any and all donations whenever someone chooses, but it is good to know we can rely on the monthly Peace Makers to sustain our programming each month. What benefit do I get if I am a monthly Peace Maker?
There are tons of benefits! From workshops and prize drawing entries, to useful and thoughtful K4P merchandise. It all depends on what level you choose to give. We have our first Peace Makers Workshop coming soon in 2025 with the History of Revolutionary Crafters! However, the biggest benefit is knowing you are sustaining a very small nonprofit every single month. How do I join?
It is easy! Simply go to https://www.coloradogives.org/donate/Knitting4Peace
Once on the webpage, make sure to select "Monthly Donation" instead of "One-time Donation". Once you complete the donation, we get an email notification and will sign you up for your level! If you are not an online person, that's ok! Just let us know that you plan to send a monthly check and we will be on the look out for that. We are SO grateful for our existing monthly donors and we simply couldn't get through each year without you! Thank you for your belief in our mission! |
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Consistency is Key: Cowls
Although we do not receive many specific requests for cowls, they really seem to be an appropriate option so we welcome WARM cowls that we can send to those who request adult scarves.
There is great variation in the kinds of cowls we have received in the past, with some that are single wrap, some double-wrapped, and even a few “hooded” cowls. All must be able to fit over the heads of an average-sized adult, with most being between 24”-29” in circumference. The height can be variable as long as the cowls are warm. Please do not send in lightweight or “fashion-type” cowls as these are not useful for our partner organizations. |
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Small baby blankets and Peace Pals |
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Thank you so much to those who respond so quickly and so generously to our requests for specific items.
Despite a huge influx of Peace Pals recently, we are still running quite low on these special friends. We particularly need more Pals with medium and dark brown faces. We also cannot keep up with the demand for Peace Pals with hijabs and have found it is easiest if the pals and hijabs come in together. Please review the Peace Pals Guidelines for size, facial features, and coloring of Peace Pals. Over the last couple of months we have sent 50 Peace Pals to Nairobi, Kenya, 200 to children and seniors in need across the Denver area, and 35 to hurricane survivors in North Carolina.
One of our most requested items continues to be small baby blankets. These blankets should be no smaller than 26”, and no larger than 30”, on all sides. These small sized blankets go to hospitals that care for infants, many of whom are leaving NICU programs, and to organizations overseas who serve infants and their families. One of our newer partners, Denver Health, has shared that larger baby blankets can sometimes be difficult to manage for families who use public transportation.
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Free Workshop Announcement: Peace Pal Make-A-Longs
We have had 2 wonderful Peace Pal Make-A-Longs and they are receiving rave reviews! Our next one is January 8th with more to follow. Make sure you stay tuned to the newsletter for more updates! This workshop is completely free and open to everyone. Even if you do not want to make a Peace Pal, but would like the company of fellow crafters, please join us for the next workshop! Use the button on the right to register! You can check out the past workshops on our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@knitting4peace629/videos
- February 5, 2025 (Skirts, overalls)
- March 4, 2025 (Hijabs, hats)
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April 9, 2025 (Slouchy sweater, babies, bibs)
All virtual workshops are 4-530pm (Mountain Time) |
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Please note: Our donation intake is run solely by volunteers. Unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to immediately acknowledge each package as it arrives. Remember, you can always track your package with your carrier.
Remember, mailing costs qualify as tax-deductible nonprofit donations. Keep your receipts! Due to a lack of storage, K4P cannot accept yarn donations unless they are new and still in the original wrapper. Thank you for understanding. |
| Mail or bring items to: 2600 N. Leyden St., Denver, CO 80207 Drop-Off hours: Monday through Thursday, 9am-12pm
The church is no longer staffed by an assistant so please be sure to go during the timeframe mentioned above. Ring the doorbell and you will be let into the church to drop off your items.
EACH mailed box or dropped-off bag must include a note with the DATE, NAME, MAILING ADDRESS, E-MAIL, AND PEACE POD. |
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HAVE A QUESTION ON HOW TO MAKE SOMETHING? ASK ARNA! |
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Are you ready to support the mission of Knitting4Peace?
Donate using the button below! |
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Contact Arna@knitting4peace.org with questions about patterns and guidelines. Check out our social media posts for the latest news (links below). If you have questions about deliveries or donations please email info@knitting4peace.org. ALL donations sustain our work. Donate online or mail checks to:
2600 Leyden Street, Denver, CO 80207
Donations to Knitting4Peace are tax-deductible. |
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