Knitters prepare thousands of items

Community

29 May

Children enjoy their new blankets. Donated by Operation CoverUp.

Those in freezing European conditions are about to receive bales full of warm fuzzies from Taupō’s knitting community.

All year, knitters from across the district and further afield have been knitting up a storm of biblical proportions, to add some cosy colour to the Eastern European communities of Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania, and Ukraine.

It’s part of an intiative called Operation CoverUp, started by Taupō’s Liz Clarke 24 years ago, after she was moved by the plight of young people, suffering through temperatures as low as -25C with no access to blankets, hats and other winter gear.

It has since become a national effort, managed by Mission Without Borders with two 40-foot containers sent to Europe each year, stacked full of warm, knitted clothing.

This year’s organisers Lynette Leppington, Michelle Roddan and Elizabeth McHardy are inviting knitters and other supporters to Equippers Church on June 12 for a thank you morning tea, a get-together and a guest speaker from Mission Without Borders (10am-midday).

It is also an opportunity for those with knitting to drop off their creations so they can be included in the shipment. Last year, more than 80 people attended.

Donations of wool, and more knitting volunteers are welcome anytime.

They also wanted to thank sponsors this year including Glynn Pointon who has supported the initiative for two years, Farmlands which bale up the woolen items in wool sacks, Penny Homes which is donating tennis balls for the children and Shades Trucking which does the storage.