Hi, My name is Wendy and I am currently doing chemotherapy at the Humphrey Cancer Center in Robbinsdale. I noticed a box of hats the other day at the center and helped myself to one. It is a pretty maroon crochet hat with a cute heart on it. I love hearts…so I knew it was for me. 😊 Thank you so much for making the beautiful hats for all of us cancer patients, it is such a sweet thing to know that there are people out there that care! Thank you too all of your workers! Sincerely, Wendy

These came in recently, and we wanted to be sure that you, our hardworking volunteers, got a chance to read them.

From HealthEast Care Center (Woodwinds and St. John's)

From North Memorial - Humphrey Cancer Center

From volunteer Sandi Fischer

From the Minneapolis VA

by Amy Pass

Several years ago when I was part of the start of a small business, I was told that for a business to make it past the first 3 years was extraordinary. It meant we were more likely to succeed in the long run. Well everyone, we’ve made it 4 years, and this was our biggest year yet! In 2016, you collectively made 937 items, which put us well past 3000 total items since we began! That’s more than any of the previous years, despite so many of your items being larger projects - like blankets and shawls.

You’ll be happy to know that the Team Yarn information collecting data sheet now has a system for breaking down how many of your items were hats and how many were larger items. (Thanks to Gabe for helping with the spreadsheets!). Unfortunately, we didn’t start breaking down the numbers until August, but since August, you’ve made 35 BLANKETS...and we aren’t talking small stuff, either!

Thanks to Tesha, my partner in crime, we’re getting a little more organized every year! Not only did she help talk through what we needed on a spreadsheet, she also helped get us more organized about where we’ll donate each month. Together we’ve created a rotating schedule of donation sites to make that process easier! Tesha gets the blog posts out about meetings and donations, and she’s heading up the project to get Team Yarn tshirts and other “swag” items so you can proudly advertise Team Yarn wherever you go. Thanks, Tesha, for being the resident photographer, journalist, and kid-wrangling donation delivery partner!

Team Yarn donated to 9 different facilities this year: Angel Foundation, HCMC Whittier Clinic, Humphrey Cancer Center (twice), Minnesota Oncology, Hope Lodge, Woodwinds Cancer Care Center, Our Lady of Peace Hospice, St. John’s Hospital, and the VA Medical Center. We also donated to numerous individuals. Please always feel free to ask on behalf of a friend or family member. That’s what we’re here for, and I almost always have a small stash in my closet!

I’d like to give an extra-special shout out to our top 5 contributors this year, but first I wanted to make sure to acknowledge our two youngest members, Josey & Jordy for their very first hat donations this year! Josey & Jordy have been members of the team for a long time, attending meetings since the very beginning, and we are so proud of them for putting in the time and hard work required to learn a new skill! We’re honored that they passed some of their very first handmade items to Team Yarn, and we had the privilege of donating those items to people in need of some warmth and comfort. YOU make us proud!!

So, on to the top 5 this year: Jody Gilbertson from Beldenville, WI was our top contributor with a total of 238 items! We have never met Jody, but she has sent boxes of hats and blankets throughout this past year, including those incredibly beautiful flower granny square blankets, which receive high praise everywhere we go! Next is Sandra Slater with 221 items. This is 53 MORE items than she made last year! Wow! Third is another woman we have never met. Sandi Fischer from Isanti, MN donated 174 items this years. She leaves her donations at our drop site in Cambridge. (Thanks so much to Vickie Christensen for accepting those donations for us at the Century 21 office.) Contributors #4 and #5 are sisters in close competition. Linda Moore made 86 items this year, while her sister, Bernice Foster, made 85. (I'm sure if Aunt Bernice had known that, she would have made at least one more!!) We owe them special thanks, not only for coming, but for bringing their children and grandchildren to Team Yarn! 

We are so grateful for the work of each person on this Team. Every single hat matters to someone. Every blanket, shawl, scarf, cowl, or pair of mittens gets passed along to someone in need of a pick-me-up. We hear over and over again at our donation sites how much our work matters to people, and we want to pass those words of praise and encouragement on to you. You should see the smiles and hear all the thanks!! You are all artists and creators, and we want you to know that your creations are a gift and a blessing to your community, some of whom you know and many you don’t know. THANK YOU!!

More photos and stuff from our January meeting here in this post.

From Samuel on April 20, 2016:
Thank you for the hat my wife picked up at MN Oncology during chemo...it brightened her day!

Read more about our donation to MN Oncology here.

Here are a couple lovely notes we've received lately.

 This note from Jody Gilbertson came with about 28 hats of various sizes and designs, 6 mittens and a fantastic blanket.

Wow! Sandi dropped off two large bags of hats at our Cambridge drop-off site in January.

We are so grateful for the relationship we have with the VA. What lovely people we connect with there.

Amy's speech, video-style

Here is the speech Amy gave during our Year 3 anniversary meet-up at Silverwood Park on Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016:

Year 3!! I know you’re all looking forward to hearing the numbers this year, and I am excited to bring them to you!! First, I have to say, though, how amazed I am by the dedication of this group. We are 3 years in and still going strong! The “member list” jumped from 70 to 84 this year, meaning that 14 NEW people contributed to the group in one way or another in 2015. Keep spreading the word!

Team Yarn donated to 9 different facilities this year (same as last year, by the way): Ronald McDonald House in Minneapolis, Minnesota Oncology in Minneapolis, Fairview Riverside NICU, U of M Masonic Children’s Hospital (twice!!), St. John’s Hospital, Woodwinds Cancer Care Center, Cambridge Hospital Harbor Room, the VA Medical Center, and Minneapolis Children’s Hospital. In addition, Team Yarn contributed hats to the Alissa M. Haines Stomp Out Suicide 5K in Wyoming, MN for their silent auction. This was especially timely and poignant, as one of our group members knitted several hats in grief and in remembrance of her neighbor and friend, who committed suicide ...and we have a number of group members who participated in the 5K this year and in past years.  We gave away hats, blankets, and shawls to at least six individuals this year, known to our group or friends of our group, including one special little boy from Israel, whom we had the privilege of meeting at the U of M Masonic Children’s Hospital.  

All told, Team Yarn members made 558 items this year!! We passed the milestone of 2,000 items since our beginning, and we’ve reached a grand total 2,154! Give yourselves a giant pat on the back AND go out and tell the world! Our numbers are down a little since last year, as many of us also have obligations to ever-changing family, work, and community commitments. That said, if you know someone who would like to join our efforts, please pass along our information. I have stacks of business cards that can be shared!

I’d like to give an extra-special shout out to our top 5 handmade item contributors this year: Sandra Slater with 168, Linda Moore with 95, Bernice Foster (who is currently in sunny Arizona for the winter) with 80, Lorraine Herges (who donates at our Cambridge drop site) with 47, and Tesha Pettit with 26!! Wow! You all are amazing! This makes up over half of our total for the year! TESHA, I can’t believe you made it into the top five with all of the other work you do! You arrange donation drop-offs, take notes & photos, write blog posts, and keep our facebook events up to date! You are incredible...quite possibly a superhero! Thank you for all of that and your consistent, steady support!!

Our group continues to receive feedback on the quality of our items, the care that clearly goes into each piece. Thanks to every single one of you for generously giving of your time, energy and creativity to make Team Yarn MORE than successful. We have more to be proud of than just numbers. From Christmas hats and hats with scarves and flowers and pretty little ribbons...to round blankets and big fluffy blankets tied up with bows...this group honors people by gifting things that are beautiful...things we would want to receive ourselves. 

Finally, HUGE thanks to all of you who are HERE on this cold, cold January day! This meeting has consistently been so warm and friendly, a welcome place of grace and community in the middle of every month. I appreciate all of you! ...and now...CUPCAKES!

We received this lovely card in the mail in December from Health East Cancer Care, where we dropped off items in June 2015 (click here to view the post on St. John's and the one on Woodwinds).

A note of thanks:

I went to the Cancer Resource Center at Cambridge Medical Center to buy a few hats for my Mom Monday. They brought me into the Harbor Room where I was told I could not buy a hat. A little dumbfounded I said, I can't buy a hat and she said no they are free, please take as many as you want. She then proceeded to show me all of the different hats and invited me to bring my mom to the Center. A big THANK YOU to the volunteers who make the wonderful, colorful assortment of hats and to the volunteers who donate their time at the hospital. My Mom loved her hats and they look wonderful on her. Thank you Team Head Huggers! ~ Sandy Staloch

Special shout out to Alexys Tellinghusen!! We received this message in our inbox:

A huge THANK YOU to Alexys Tellinghusen for the fabulous purple hat that I found at MN Oncology in Minneapolis.

November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month and I will wear it often (I am wearing it right now).

I am sending love right back to you.
Beth

Click here to read more about our donation in January 2015 to Minnesota Oncology in Minneapolis.

Terri Shoberg had this to say about the three hats she received from Team Yarn - Head Huggers in October 2015:

Tricia Brownlee [of the Morning Blend Bible Study at Park Ave. United Methodist Church] delivered 3 very cute hats to me a couple of weeks ago. I love them & they are much lighter to wear around the house than my wig. Thank you so much for your kindness.