Let's Warm Up America! One Square at a Time
From the humblest of origins, Warm Up America! has matured into the best known and largest of American knitting charities.
If you can knit a square, you can knit for Warm Up America! It's as simple as that. Maybe that's why Warm Up America! has evolved into what's been called "the mother" of all American knitting charities. They make it so easy to help the homeless that it seems a shame not to try.
ALL IT TAKES IS A SQUARE
Evie Rosen, the proprietor of The Knitting Nook in Wausau, Wisconsin, first conceived the idea for Warm Up America! in 1991. The charity addresses two issues close to knitters' hearts: one small, the other large enough to encompass the entire world.
First of all, she wanted to help warm up the homeless people of America -- that's the big issue. As for the small issue, she had to do something with all the oddball lots of yarn she and every other serious knitter collected and then didn't use.
So why not tackle both issues with one project? Leftover yarn works just fine for knitting squares that can be sewn together to make afghans, those cozy knitted blankets that have been traditional to American households for hundreds of years. And so Warm Up America! was born.
Evie started the project at a local grassroots level, but it wasn't long before it attracted national attention. Articles in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and Crafts magazine quickly sent its popularity through the roof.
AFGHANS FOR AMERICANS
Warm Up America! started out as a way to provide warmth for any Wisconsonite who had lost their home, for whatever reason. Now it's coast to coast, and volunteers all over America have lovingly knitted uncounted squares and stitched them into blankets.
Since 1994, the Craft Yarn Council of America has run the day-to-day operations of Warm Up America! Evie has retired, but she still participates. Under their joint guidance, Warm Up America! has become the best-known and largest charity of its kind.
START LOCALLY
Warm Up America! urges volunteer knitters to get together and knit individual squares, and then sew them together into blankets for the benefit of the local homeless community. Or, you can send your squares and afghans straight to the CYCA. You can find information on all this and more on the Warm Up America! website.
You can choose your own colors, but Warm Up America! suggests that you use an easily washable yarn. Most of your donations will go to shelters and other facilities that don't have the ability to handle items requiring special care. Acrylics, washable wools, and wool/acrylic blends are best.