by Jennifer Price
The year was 2009. I was not quite a year into a new hobby. Knitting. Everyone I knew was getting hats and scarves as I practiced making handmade goods with yarn and needles. My burgeoning skills had me devouring all things knitting…books, blogs, email subscriptions, you name it. It was there that a quick glance led to a unique year-long partnership.
As I scanned an email looking for inspiration for my next project, I stumbled upon a blurb highlighting an organization that was collecting knitted items to hand out to orphaned and vulnerable children in South Africa. I couldn’t believe my eyes. We had only been in the country for a couple of years. The mission of Ten Thousand Homes was going strong, but the need was big in our area. I wondered what it might look like to partner together to give the kids in our feeding programs warm blankets to cover up at night.
A quick email and a phone call later and pretty soon, the squares were pouring in. We would receive hundreds of knitted and crocheted squares (along with some hats and vests) from all over the world that we would piece together to form a blanket. We had square sewing days where staff, kids from the local community, adults, and even police officers would come together to sew. I’m positive that every volunteer that year had a part in creating knitted blankets.
In looking back over our rich 19 year history, this story stands out for several reasons…
There’s no action too small. We can all make a difference even if it’s sitting in our recliner in Texas knitting one square to send to Africa for a child in need.
The impact of a simple act. I can still see the smiles on the kid’s faces when they received their very own unique blanket. It was priceless. One of those kids even ended up going through one of our training programs and working on staff with us for a season.
Partnership is a beautiful thing. Africa taught me that we can accomplish so much more together than individually. At Ten Thousand Homes, we want to see a world where families thrive. With over 1 billion people worldwide living in poverty, it makes it difficult for them to access the most basic needs of shelter and nutrition. If we want to see our dream become reality, we can’t do it alone. We have to partner with knitters all over the world, with police officers willing to take time out of their busy schedules to sew squares, and with you. Thank you for being a part of the Ten Thousand Homes story the past 19 years!
“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” African Proverb
