Staff Writer
HOULTON — One stitch at a time, volunteers in the Houlton area are making a difference.
“We have 100 sweaters finished so far,” explained Anita Hubert, who is helping organize the “Share Your Warmth with the Children” Project. “And we want to send the first shipment out around the beginning of June.”
Pioneer Times Photo/Sarah Berthiaume
SHARE YOUR WARMTH — Anita Hubert displays two of the finished sweaters scheduled to be sent to children in Canto Grande, Peru. Sweaters are being knitted for “Share Your Warmth with the Children,” a project to supply school children in St. Mary’s sister parish with sweaters for the winter.
Handmade sweaters of all shapes, sizes and colors will be heading to Canto Grande, Peru, a city 15 miles east of Lima. The church there, which also includes two schools, has been a sister parish to St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Houlton since the 1970s. For years, the Houlton church has kept in touch and helped the South American parish with special projects. But the needs in Canto Grande took on new meaning when Hubert and Ana Ritchie traveled to Peru two years ago to see the work there.
“Up until two years ago, no one had been there from our church,” explained Hubert.
Poverty is a part of life for most in Canto Grande, but Hubert said the Peruvians’ resourcefulness amazed her.
“It’s just amazing how much they do with so little,” she said.
For example, rainfall is minimal there and most homes do not have running water, she explained, but the students boasted spotlessly clean school uniforms. Parish members apply their own skills making items to sell and volunteer their labor to power various projects.
“Every little thing they have is used as a resource,” added Hubert.
That 2006 visit left a lasting impression and inspired the ongoing “Share Your Warmth” sweater project. The goal is to make a sweater for each child in the two Canto Grande schools they visited; 600 attend the handicapped school and 2,000 attend the kindergarten through grade 11 school.
“Their seasons are opposite ours. So, as we’re heading into spring, they’re heading into fall,” she explained. “It can get down to 30 degrees and most of the houses don’t have any heat. A lot of the houses are just cardboard.”
The sweater project started roughly a month ago and so far 100 sweaters have been completed. Hubert said they’re hoping to collect cash donations for yarn and shipping, as well as gain support from knitters who could create sweaters. Drop-off boxes are at Main Street Fitness and St. Mary’s; patterns are also available there.
“The kind of yarn and the size don’t really matter,” she said. “With 3,000 children, chances are there will be someone who can fit into any size.”
The project will be ongoing. Even though the first shipment is scheduled for June, other sweater shipments are planned.
“It’s going to mean so much to each of these children to get a sweater. They have so little; everything they get is a treasure,” explained Hubert.
For more information on the sweater project, contact Hubert at 538-9417.
