Student Work

Knit-a-Square: Together We Care

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by Candie Dickinson

Twenty-three 7th and 8th grade girls in the Instilling Goodness Girls School learn to knit a square.  The Knit-a-Square Project was part of their Life Skills class. They learned about the history of knitting, which began around 300-499 BC.  By joining others around the world in knitting a square, these students help raise awareness about HIV/AIDS orphans in Africa.  The squares are sent to the KasCare organization where they are sewn together, making a warm blanket for the children.

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KasCare started in 2008 as a family project and now is a world-wide community numbering an estimated 12,000 people in 54 countries around the world.[1] “KasCare’s knit-a-square program has two goals:

  1. To warm and comfort these children, and
  2. To raise awareness of this mostly hidden human tragedy.

For children suffering from HIV AIDS, an autoimmune disease, keeping warm helps their ability to stay well.”[2] Children receiving these blankets know that people all over the world love them and care about them.  The KasCare organization states that, “Crocheting and knitting for charity, especially for children in need, is a meditative act of love.”[3]

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The girls of Instilling Goodness Elementary Girls School are continuing to knit squares to add to their blanket.  They appreciate Liesbeth Pasternak, Cheryl Thompson, Kay Hill and Nadine Boer for taking their time to help them learn to knit and for donating yarn for the project.

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[1] KasCare website, www.knit-a-square.com.
[2] http://www.knit-a-square.com/knitting-for-charity-for-children.html.
[3] Ibid.

Categories: Student Work