Calgary group distributes handmade scarves downtown to help those in need

A group of Calgarians have been kept busy during this cold winter, making handmade treasures to help those in the city who are in need.

CommuKNITY Cares is a volunteer group in Calgary that started at the Salvation Army’s Glenmore Temple church. They give back to their community by handing out hand-knit scarves, mittens and other things.

On Valentine’s Day, they decided to bring warm hugs to people living on the streets of Calgary.

“This morning, I got in my car here and I have to admit, I got in, it was -22 C, I had my heated seats and my heated steering wheel and I went, ‘Ahh, I don’t have enough! I don’t have enough winter clothes,'” Allison Patrick said. “It brought the whole thing into perspective.”

A team of about 20 knitters had been working hard since December, making 140 scarves to distribute throughout the city’s core. They toured around downtown Calgary on Thursday, stopping at about eight destinations.

In some cases, they handed the scarves directly to people living on the street, in others, the scarves were left on fences or poles for people to take.

Each one came with a note that read: “I’m not lost. I was handmade for you to keep you warm. Please take me and know that you are loved.”

“That’s our whole mission, really, was to just let people know that they’re loved,” Patrick said.

“It can feel awfully alone out there and isolated and then there’s us on this end, and I just wanted to bring awareness to people that do have everything versus those that are in need and just kind of connect the two.”

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Patrick said the group is hoping to inspire others to get involved in giving back to their community.

“It’s not just the homeless that are on the streets,” she said. “It’s people in need – so many, with the recession, have lost their jobs and we can give back to them as well.”

Patrick said the group is collecting mittens and blankets and they also make prayer blankets and shawls for the Agape Hospice. She said people can learn more on how to get involved by visiting their website.