Knitters create joy with woolly baby garments

L-R Nita Selena from Hawke's Bay Plunket, Kiwi Family Trust's Barbara Aitken and Plunket's Tanya Jain with many of the knitters and their efforts. Photo/Warren Buckland

The timing for the delivery of hundreds of warm and woolly beanies could not have been more suitable.

Hawke's Bay temperatures were struggling to make 14C on the day the knitted headwarmers created a blaze of colour at the Flaxmere Baptist Church last week when they were brought out for the official handover between their creators, the Kiwi Family Trust Knitting Club, and Plunket.

For several mums who called by on the day to be given a beanie for baby the joy was obvious.

"It is always very special," Plunket's funding and grants co-ordinator Nita Selena said.
As well as more than 100 baby beanies, many with a Hawke's Bay theme knitted into them, there were little jackets and cardigans delivered as well.

Ms Selena said while many of the beanies would go out to needy families as part of Plunket's home visits, as well as at their clinics and general support from their hub, many would be put up for sale as part of a community fundraising programme.

Funding, and securing enough of it, was a constant ingredient in the quest to keep community services running, Ms Selena said, and they were looking to spread the beanie word through their Facebook site as well as look at setting up sales stalls at places like the Farmers Market.

"They will help us support community services for families and children in the Hawke's Bay region."

Kiwi Family Trust community project manager Barbara Aitken started the knitting club six years ago for one simple purpose - to make sure little heads and bodies all around the country were kept warm.

The trust teamed up with Plunket and since that time the woolly warmth had spread from one end of the country to the other with about 150 knitters, from Kaitaia to Bluff, taking up needles to do their bit.

Across the Hawke's Bay region the knitters were supported by Skeinz who got onboard as providers of the wool for the warming work.

About 15 of the estimated 30 local knitters who got behind this year's 'beanies for babies' knitting campaign joined the Plunket crew and young mums at the big handover.

It was a case of lots of beanies and lots of smiles.