The Knit Before Christmas

If you’re shopping online, please consider using iGive. It’s a search engine and shopping site that donates money to SCI with every click. Some people have known about igive.com for years, and by using the site have earned funds for the Institute. Here’s how it works:

iGive is a free service which enables registered members to earn money for their favorite cause whenever they make an online purchase or search the Web. A portion of each purchase is donated to your cause. Plus, when you shop within 45 days of registering they’ll donate an extra $5.

After registering, point your browser to http://isearch.igive.com/ and use it instead of Google. Also, if you use aggregating shopping sites like NexTag, Shopping.com, PriceGrabber, or other price comparison services, check out igive.com. Popular retailers like JCPenney, Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Gap, and Nordstrom list with igive.com. Simply by browsing, SCI benefits!

Use the link below, select SCI as your charity, register, and start surfing. You don’t even have to make any purchases, and iGive is a free service. Read more about iGive at http://www.igive.com

http://www.igive.com/welcome/

As I mentioned in my previous post, I participated in the Ravelympics, aka the fiber olympics on Ravelry. I decided to make my challenge be to design a new hat pattern for CAS that folks could use during Knit 4 Lent this year. I knew I wanted to make a pattern that was a little more challenging. We already have so many patterns for beginners.

I tried knit and purl patterns, I tried cables, I tried colorwork, but nothing really clicked. Finally I decided the best pattern would be one that coordinates with our Seafarer’s Scarf. I had my heart set on a folded brim, and from there the hat seemed to design itself. I will be publishing this pattern in our upcoming newsletter and should have the pdf up tomorrow, but for now, enjoy a picture. I took it myself, so please forgive the close up.

Two years ago CAS asked you to make knitting part of your Lenten discipline by knitting hats for the 4000 mariners SCI serves in the Gulf Region of the United States. Although we didn’t complete the 4000 hats in the 40 days of Lent, for two years now we have collected 4000 hats and distributed them on Christmas day. Thanks!

This year has been especially cold and those gifts have been more useful and more valued than ever. I’ve written a bit about the outpouring of gratitude for our gifts on our website. Please take a look.

For those of you who are participating this year, come and find us in the Christmas at Sea knitters group on Ravelry. Ravelry is a social networking site for knitters where you can find patterns, information about yarns and share pictures of your work. The Christmas at Sea group needs your participation! Although I love finding new folks to join needles with us, I’d love to have the participation of the many knitters that have been working along side this program for years. If you have any questions about how to join Ravelry, or how to find CAS once you are there, please send me a message. I’ll gladly walk you through it.

Also on Ravelry, Christmas at Sea is competing in the 2010 Ravelympics. Knit along with the Winter Olympics by challenging yourself to a knitting or crochet goal. Since it’s hat season here, I’ve challenged myself to write a new free pattern for CAS which will be published in our upcoming newsletter. Since we have so many great patterns for beginners, this pattern will be a bit more difficult.   I’ll be knitting that pattern throughout Lent and come Easter it will thoroughly tested and ready for publication.

What are your knitting goals this year? How do you challenge yourself?

If you’re participating in Knit 4 Lent this year, please label your items Knit4Lent and have them mailed by April 19.

Each year the knitting group of St. Thomas Church in Mamaroneck, NY knits and collects gifts for mariners and blesses them before making their donation to SCI. Then they go one step further and send pictures.

I love opening my inbox and seeing the smiling faces of SCI’s knitting friends. If you bless your items before donating, or hold some sort of gathering or special collection day, please take a picture and share! Although many of you knit in groups already, there are also many knitters who knit alone and it feels great to see the faces of those who are knitting along with us.

Hi everyone!

Most of our donations come in during late fall, but you can help our program a lot by shipping early and continuing to knit and collect through fall and early winter.
We published 2 new scarf patterns in our newsletter; take a peak–maybe you’ll be inspired to knit a few extra items this summer. These patterns are for colorful striped scarves made with leftover yarn. Perfect for all of those little leftover bits in the bottom of the knitting basket.
Right now our greatest demand is for hats and mariners scarves, but most important is that you enjoy what you are knitting–so pick a pattern you like and cast on!

Are you in our ravelry group? Visit: http://www.ravelry.com/groups/christmas-at-sea
Have a great day!

Many of you have asked how we can care for the victims of piracy. Aside from continuing to pray for all mariners and especially those at risk…what else can we as individuals really do?

SCI has crafted an open letter to governments, international organizations and the overall maritime industry requesting that attention be given to the victims of piracy and their families. SCI has been working for years to orevent and supress piracy and that work will continue, but this petition focuses attention on the real human lives that are affected by this violence.

Please read the whole story on our website and sign the petition here.

Each year our handknit gifts are distributed by chaplains working in Port Newark NJ, Port of Houston, and all along our inland waterways. They are so lucky to hear and see the reactions of the mariners who receive these gifts…don’t you think so? I’ve asked Chaplain Marge Lindstrom to share some of her 2008 stories with us…so we can feel a little bit of what it’s like to be there with them and to know what our gifts really mean to those who receive them.

Last January I finally caught up with one of the Horizon ships, an American ship that traveled between Puerto Rico and U.S…. It was the first week in January, and we were catching up with ships that we had missed earlier.  At any rate, I brought two and a half boxes of CAS to the gangway, and one of the deck hands helped bring the boxes up.  The Chief Officer was waiting for me at the top of the gangway, greeted me and said, “Seamen’s Church!  It is always a pleasure to welcome you  on board.  Are those Christmas presents for us?”  I said yes, and apologized for not getting them on board before Christmas.  The C/O smiled broadly, and said, “Oh, that doesn’t matter.  It means so much to the crew just to be remembered at this time of the year.”  Then he reminisced, “ I remember my first voyage as a cadet.  It was Christmas time, and I was really homesick.  I was miserable.  And then one of your chaplains came on board and delivered Christmas presents.  My C/O gave one to me, and I was just so grateful—no one else had given us anything, and I felt, well, cared for.  So thank you once again.  We have a cadet on board now who is also on his first voyage and is very homesick.  He is going to get the first present out of the box.”

Lots of SCI staff members lend a hand to make sure gifts get made and distributed. Take a gander at Deborah Blanchard, an attorney for the Center of Seafarers Rights as she protects one seafarer’s right to be warm.

Staff attorney Deb Blanchard knitting her first seafarer's scarf

Hi all,

Well, we are all hussle and bustle in the Christmas Room these days. So far we have collected 15,057 gifts and we’ve packed 13,557 of them as of today. So, the cupboards are starting to look a little bare, but we’re still receiving lots of packages every day.

Here’s a breakdown of our current inventory:

Mariners Scarves: 4506
We need: 494 more!
Mariners Caps: 3205
We need: 895 more!
Seafarer’s Sets: 5604
We need only 411 more!!!!
Socks, Vests & Helmets: 1774
We need 761 more!

We received a generous donation of handknit afghans, which are not easy for us to distribute to seafarers–its hard enough for our chaplains to make their way up the gangway bearing caps and scarves.   We have decided to gift these items to retired seafarers living at Snug Harbor in Nelson Bay, NC.

Snug Harbor was founded in New York and 1801 with the mission:

to always provide a home for “aged, decrepit and worn out seamen”

We’ve never given gifts to these mariners before and I am excited to have the opportunity to reach out to them this year.

If you’re in the New York City area, please join me for our annual volunteer holiday party on December 16th from 3-7pm. It’s an open house, so please bring your knitting and join us for whatever part of the evening you can. Hope to see you then!

Packing season has begun here in the Christmas Room and so far we’ve packed 4851 gifts for mariners.  Woohoo!  That sounds like a lot–but we still have 12,599 to go!

Here’s a breakdown of the inventory in the Christmas room and a count of what we still need to reach 17,500 mariners :

Mariners Scarves: 3041
We still need: 1959 more!
Mariners Caps: 2273
We still need: 1727 more!
Seafarer’s Sets: 4419
We still need 1596 more!
Socks, Vests & Helmets: 1381
We still need 1154 more!

Have a great weekend & happy knitting!!!
Jeanette

Chrismas at Sea is thrilled to be hosting a monthly event for Sit ‘n’ Knit NYC, New York’s most popular, diverse, fun and active knitting groups (crocheters also welcome!).

The third Wednesday of each month will be Sit ‘n’ Knit at SCI, from 6-8pm in the Christmas Room at 241 Water Street. You must be a member of Sit ‘n’ Knit to attend, so pop over to the website and become a member. Sit ‘n’ Knit events fill up fast, so once you receive the announcement, scoot on over and sign up!

We’ve got great lighting, seating and great company–what’s stopping you?