homeless

Crocheting Together More than Just a Square

| Betsy

Even though the photo gallery for the story does have a glaring error (mistaking crochet for knitting), the story is so amazing that doesn’t matter. My mom sent me a clipping of this article in the mail and it arrived today. Excerpts and photo below are from the article, Nobody Comes Here Just to Crochet.

I think the most touching thing is the way it started:

It started by accident.

A homeless woman came to Charlotte’s Harvest Center soup kitchen one Tuesday, and instead of mingling with the hungry crowd, she sat in a corner, crocheting.

Weeks passed, and at some point, the staff noticed another homeless woman beside her, also crocheting.

The two eventually became three women, then six, then 10.

Four years later, nearly 30 women can be found in that corner every Tuesday, and no longer are they just the homeless.

The Crochet Ministry, as it’s called, has become a family of sorts, one that welcomes those often forgotten by the rest of Charlotte: the homeless, the elderly, the disabled, the impoverished, the displaced and, most of all, the lonely.

I also love the kindness in the story of Teresa Davis, the homeless woman who used to crochet on the streets. While she died a few years ago with no family, thanks to these ladies, she certainly had a circle of friends. I like the quiet way this circle formed, organically and by accident. How true that sometimes we don’t find what we need most, it finds us.

It was the center’s outreach director, Rosa Marion, who first spotted Davis living on the streets, carrying a large afghan stuffed in a bag. Marion was intrigued when she found out Davis had made it, and the two struck up a friendship. Later, Marion invited Davis to move into a group home sponsored by Women of Vision, a volunteer ministry that helps women in need.

“She asked me if I’d buy her the stuff to crochet another afghan, so I did,” recalls Marion. “She’d always be sitting there by herself in that corner, crocheting. People called her ‘the lady pulling on those strings.'”

You can read more about the work of The Harvest Center here (Although there is a syntax error that shows up on the screen, I know it will be up and running soon!) and about the Women of Vision over here.

Also:

*Slow Textiles
*The Daily Aphorism via The School of Life
*The beauty of Naoki Okamoto’s photography
*Gladys’ longevity secrets: Crafting it up at 104!
*How to make a project keeper by Diane Gilleland
*Coat hooks on Etsy.com (Random, yes, but so cool!)
*Slide show of Renwick Gallery exhibit: The Art of Gaman (Awesomely inspiring)
*19 tips for cheering yourself up… From 200 years ago via The Happiness Project

Thanks for the heads up, Mom!

‘Homeless Real World.’

| Betsy

An article about a group of people who filmed the lives of 6 homeless individuals in Denver recently came up on the radar. The project was originally filmed for Mania TV, but after it was deemed “too edgy,” the filmmakers are now looking for somewhere to air this reality show. (Or “actuality show,” as it was noted in the article.) Optimistically, they are in the process of editing the 160 hours of footage down to smaller portions for future viewing as a television series.

Homeless Real World (sizzle reel) from Broadcasting & Cable on Vimeo.

When I was 16, I had a friend named Jimmy, who was a year or so older. He left his parents house due to abuse and lived on the streets. He was in our wide circle of friends, and would sleep in the park or at a friend’s house, stashing his few possessions in his backpack. I remember running into him and snacking on treats he had found (fully boxed and closed) in the dumpsters behind grocery stores, worrying about his safety, and amazed that despite living in a park he held down various part-time jobs, albeit for short periods of time. He was killed in a car accident when he was 23. At his funeral, we all wondered how he could have sustained his lifestyle in the long run and were happy his skateboard was with him in his coffin.

Ever since then, I’ve held a special spot in my heart for the homeless. Not the ones who swear and yell and beg you for money, but the ones who play instruments or have dogs or quietly sit on doorsteps with handmade signs. I am amazed at how life bustles on around them and how they almost become part of the landscape, not actual human beings. I generally try to at least catch their eyes and nod as I pass, letting them know that they are not invisible, they are not just part of a larger backdrop. They are us, only a few rent checks behind. Watching the video above reminded me of Jimmy, and wondered where he would be now had he lived, if his life would be like those chosen for the show. And I remember that he gave the best most enthusiastic hugs of anyone I’ve ever known, and it is for him, that I donate some of my knitted items to the homeless.

Women In Need, Inc.
America’s Youngest Outcasts
National Coalition for the Homeless
National Alliance to End Homelessness
Department of Veterans Affairs Homeless Veteran Program

For more information on how you can help homeless people in your area, try Googling “your city name” and “homeless.” It should set you off with a few places near you that happily take handmade donations for those in need.