A fall update

Well, we were planning on having a packing night on September 21st here at the Warm Hands Network HQ (aka my east-end Ottawa home) when we received word in the late afternoon that there were severe thunderstorm and tornado warnings. We decided to cancel since all the team were coming from the centre of town and the west end. It was a good call, because the tornadoes that whipped through here caused mayhem throughout the city.

In the meantime, I topped up a couple of boxes (totalling about 70 lbs) that were in progress from our last packing night and sent them off with two local pediatric physicians travelling to Iqaluit at the beginning of this month.

Next up was a trip to Larga Baffin, where I dropped off several bags of blankets, a small bag of slippers, a few fur coats, some wool, and some knitting and sewing supplies. The staff worker receiving the items was very grateful to receive everything.

This week Anita and I went to Canadian North Cargo where they received about 100 lbs of items for Jimmy Hikok School in Kugluktuk. It was very rewarding to see the boxes head into the cargo bay on their way north. When I contacted the principal at the school regarding sending items this year, she was very grateful to hear from us, as she had just given away the last hat from our last shipment.

With the closing of the two locations of Yarn Forward and Sew-On in Ottawa, we have lost one drop-off location. However, Louise at "Yarns Ewe'll Love", in the former Kanata location of Yarn Forward has agreed to be a drop-off location. Thanks Louise! 

All the items below have been sent off to Iqaluit, Kugluktuk, and locally to Larga Baffin.

My apologies if you don't see a photo of your items. I did my best to take photos before packing them up, but occasionally things get missed. Also, I hope I don't make you dizzy with the different floor angles! The room I use for "HQ" was getting crowded! Please excuse some of the differences in font size on the captions. Blogger was not cooperating with me. ;) 

For those new to the blog, the names in brackets refer to the nickname on Ravelry.

Our next shipment will be going with the doctors up north early in the new year. No set date as yet, but I'm happy to receive your parcels whenever you send them.

Finally, if you like to knit mittens or socks, we can really use those for our shipments, especially ones to fit school-aged children. Wool socks are nearly impossible to find, so they are much appreciated.

Thank you all for your contributions and keep them coming!

 A lovely collection of mittens from Christine in Rockport, Maine

 Hats, neck warmers and mittens from Barb in Hamilton (and her guide dog Lilac!)

Socks and mittens from Marie-Caroline (tineke358) in Ottawa 

Vest, hats and socks from Jeannine (DouceAubergine) in Ottawa

 Mittens, socks and neck warmers from Wendy (Wentheknitter) in Ottawa

 Hat and mittens from Christine (CraftyEllam) 

 Lots of warm socks and a pair of mittens from Edith in Stoneham, QC

 Neck warmers, mittens, and slippers from Donna (donilou2)

Blanket, neck warmers, and thrum mittens from local knitter Kathy in Orleans

Knitted mittens and colourful fleece hats from crafters in Huntsville. 

This is just a portion of what they sent! Thanks ladies!

 Hat and mittens from Carol Ann in St. Margaret's Bay, Nova Scotia

A scrap nap blanket made by yours truly 

Blankets, shawls, hats and a neck warmer from Julie (Wabibrook)

in New Liskeard, Ontario

 Colourful socks and a pair of mittens from longtime contributor 

Jackie (JCL) in Washington State

Hat and neck warmers from Phyllis (NoCoMary) in Denver, CO

 A huge contribution of neck warmers from "Purls of Wisdom", 

a knitting group at "Innovation Science and Economic Development Canada"

 Slippers, hats, socks and a blanket from the "Faithful Fingers" knitting group 

at St. Paul and St. John's Anglican Church in Haileybury, Ontario 

Assorted items from the "Happy Hands Knit and Crochet Group" in Invermere, BC

 Hats, mittens and socks from the prolific Wendy (flowerman) 

in Smoky Lake, Alberta

Sweaters, vests, hats, and a sewn blanket from Anne in Victoria Harbour, Ontario

A sweet baby sweater and booties set, hats and slippers from 

Nancy in Beaconsfield, QC

Two lovely child-sized sweaters and a vest from Jan (Jangildart) in Parksville, BC

A heap of hats from knitters in Guelph and Cambridge, Ontario

 Hat and mittens from Jody (Bettysgirl) in South Carolina

 Neck warmers, hats, baby booties, and mittens from Susan in Massachusetts

 Hats and mittens from Stephanie in Illinois

 Blankets and hats from knitters in Alexandra, Ontario. 

This is just a portion of what they sent along!

 Hats and neck warmers from local knitter Claire in Orleans.

 Slippers, hats, and mittens and toys from Linda in BC 

Hats, shawls, balaclavas and blankets from Barbara (Obasaan) in Japan

(It was getting hard to find some clear floor space!)

Bag blankets for Larga Baffin sewn by Jeannine, with a blanket tucked inside

Socks and mittens from Anna (Atopbing) in Morrisburg, Ontario

 Two hats from Janet (busknitter) in New Brunswick

Mittens, neck warmer, and hats from Anne (libraryknitter6) In New Brunswick

 Hats from Sarah L. in New Brunswick

Hat and mittens from a knitter in PEI, via Janet

Blankets, slippers, fur coats, sewing and knitting supplies for Larga Baffin here in Ottawa

As you can see from this post, we have contributors from all over the place!

All the best to you all!

- Suzanne (on behalf of the Warm Hands Network team)