Share a Square

Over the last couple of weeks there have been many packages coming in. I’ll update you fully on where we are in the next day or two with a new post. If you just discovered this site, it may be too late to contribute squares. I’m still counting!

Many, many thanks to the following people (and a Happy New Year to you all!). Visit the Flickr page by clicking on the badge below to see all the squares.

Alice, in Massachusetts (She is Jenny McB’s mom and the last squares said Nova Scotia. hmmm?); Deanna C. in Kingsport, TN; my non-blogging friend Kate (we go waaaay back) in Corpus Christi, TX; Linda M. in Rexburg, ID; Sheila B. in Rochester, NY; Sue W. in Perkasie, PA; Robin S. in Matthews, NC; Mo, in Morgantown, IN; Cindy in Rockford, MI; Nora L, in Brooklyn, NY sent yet another batch of squares;
Hirokomi K. in Japan; Julie V. in Arizona; Brenda W. in NC; Rhena C. in Hughes Springs, TX sent more; Yui in Japan; Barb in Elkhart, IN; Ann T. in WI; An anonymous friend in Crouse, NC; Kazue in Japan sent squares, and also sent a money order to help defray the cost of postage; Saori, in Japan;
and, Sen, also in Japan. Thank you everyone and happy new year!

www.flickr.com thiseclecticlife’s Squares photoset

During the holiday season, many charities report receiving more donations. It is the “Season of Giving,” after all. It just doesn’t occur to some folks to “give” year round, probably because we all lead such hectic lives. Taking the time to give isn’t always easy.

Then, there are some folks who give of themselves (not just money) at the drop of a hat. Back on June 14th, I said I was “Searching For People With Big Hearts.” I tell you what! I found them!

Over the last few months, many people have been sending crocheted squares for the Share A Square Project, and donations of yarn and even money to help defray postage. They have helped spread the word about the project to get more people involved. It’s been the most amazing and heartwarming thing I can imagine. We almost have all the squares we need (I’m trying to put together the last few kits). Then, it’s down to rimming the squares and stitching them together.

Here are a few of the people who have donated to this project. The people who have their names in bold also stitched one or more afghans for the project. You can view them at the Afghan Gallery. Everyone’s name isn’t on the list for several reasons:

1. The program I was using for addresses is not compatible with my new Mac computer. I’m still manually adding names.
2. In the frenzy of the months of October and November, I didn’t get everything entered.
3. Some folks sent squares with no nametags and no return address.
4. OK, I admit that I’m an unorganized mess. That’s the real reason.

So, if you know a name that should be on this list, please tell me! I didn’t mean to leave them out. And, if you would like a link to your website on this page, do not hesitate to tell me that, either! I’ll get my secretary right on it.

I want to thank those of you who helped me win $100 for Share A Square in the Best Blogging Achievement Writing Project that Simonne at All Tips And Tricks hosted. Thanks to non-bloggers Rebecca T. and Annemarie and to bloggers Pearl, Robin, Marcia, Janeywan, Jamie, Barbara, Jenny McB, Jessica The Rock Chick, BeadBabe, Matty, bermudabluez, Susan Helene Gottfried, Vivien, Aaron Stroud.
I have some packages to put together (to mail after the holidays!), and an update to put together.

As you read this page, the package you see above is on its way to a little girl named Lilly. She lives in California and is battling leukemia. It’s sent from all of us to her along with our warm wishes and our love.

That’s what we are doing people.

I showed you the white afghan at the top of this update. The Moose was given to me by Matty, and it was screaming for arms to hold it. I think it’s going to find some arms.

Finally, I finished snapping all those pictures! Many thanks to EVERYONE who sent squares in this batch.Thorne, in Lucerne Valley, California, sent these lovely squares with the afghan that she had finished.

Alice, in Southlake, Texas gave me these last week at the crochet meeting. She, too had finished an afghan.

And, Marie in Keller, Texas had finished two afghans, as well as these squares!

Ren thui in Singapore sent these:

Along with each one, she put a quotation. They are very inspiring, and I love them so much, I’ll share them:

“All seasons are beautiful for the person who carries happiness within.”–Horace Fried

“The human spirit is stronger than anything that can happen to it”–C.C. Scott

“Turn you face to the sun and the shadows will fall behind you.”–Maori Proverb

“Happiness is like a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.”–Nathaniel Hawthorne

Beautiful. Thank you for sharing those!

Yumiko in Japan sent these lovely ones:

These are from Aki, in Japan, and this is exactly how she had them stacked when she sent to me. Can you say perfection and attention to detail??

Keiko in Knoxville, Tennessee sent these delicate beauties. I have to learn how to do origami! Look at those tags!

Kerryanne sent these from The Netherlands!

Rick C., in Pennsylvania sent some more. He’s good about sending them along as he gets them done!

Nora L. in New York City is good about that, too!

Hitomi in Los Angeles, California sent a large batch:

Yoshiko, in the Czech Republic sent me these:

And, Kazumi in Japan sent these beautiful ones:

Then, I have to tell you that I got a couple of wonderful gifts from volunteers! Hiro, in Japan responded to my “thank you” note by sending me this lovely handmade tree ornament. It has the most delicate cross-stiching on it! It’s going to get “pride of place” on my tree! Thank you, Hiro.

And, Connie delivered seven afghans she had made this weekend along with a sweet potato pie. Now, I had planned to take a picture of the pie before I cut it, but that didn’t happen. I’m ashamed to admit it’s almost all gone (it was delicious!). AND, I’m the only person here who will eat sweet potatoes! I couldn’t have eaten all that this quickly! No, wait. I can’t zip my pants. I DID eat it all!
Thank you, Connie. I think.

Yes, I’m still snapping pictures and I’m not finished with that stack I showed you. I also have to upload the picture of one of the lovely afghans that Thorne put together (thank you, Thorne!! I love the trim on it.).

I’ve spent most of today trying to figure out just exactly where we stand with Share A Square.

I have a total of 64 afghans stitched together and here at the house. You can see 57 of them on the Afghan Gallery.

There are quite a few afghans in progress:

Thorne has one, Donna G. has one, Tracey has two, Linda has one, Renice has two, Vixen has one, Camille has two, Tina has one, Stephanie has one, Connie has eight, Rebecca has four, Cindy has one, Carol has one and the Denton Senior Center has two. That’s 28, and I hope I didn’t miss any on my list (s).

I have 21 kits packaged, but don’t have enough stacks to make any more. We need 30 27, (I can’t add) more afghan kits. Now, I do have some stacks that are huge, but some of the stacks only have four or five squares in them. So, we are still working for the time being. I sure do wish I could get the kits all packaged before the end of the year. We will see what happens.

Y’all are awesome volunteers! Thank you for the hard work you do!

More pictures tomorrow. Sorry for the delay.

I’m still working on snapping pictures, but am whittling the stack down to size. Connie K. came from Gladewater today and brought me SEVEN finished afghans. She took away EIGHT more kits!! I love ya darlin’, and I’ll get those pictures snapped and in the gallery ASAP.
Big HUGE thanks to the following:

Janet, Alaina, and Kimberly in Colorado sent these:

Betty C. in Haltom City, Texas sent these. If you see them, Betty, I have no way to thank you for all you have done!

Jennifer W. in Whitesburg, GA sent these:

Sherry L. sent along some more. She used to be in Georgia, but has moved back to Texas. She also completed a lovely afghan that you can see in the gallery. Just click the link on the sidebar.

Andrea L and her daughter Courtney and mother Rose S. have been hard at work as you can see.

And, Betty K in Weatherford, Texas sent these. Again, Betty I have no way to thank you!

Anne in Rolling Meadows IL sent these along with two afghans that she put together. Lovely work.

People, I am so behind with Share A Square! Y’all have been the most awesome volunteers and I just can’t keep pace with you! Thank you to ALL of you, and I hope you have a Happy Holiday.

I have several things to tell you before I show you pictures.

1. If you have a blog and have been kind enough to link to Share A Square, please change the link to the url for this post so people will know what is going on right now. Or, you can send them to the NEW Share A Square Afghan Gallery. Before this weekend is out, I hope to show you 63 afghans that y’all have made!!
2. I’m trying to win $100 for Share A Square from a writing project I entered that asked me to list my Best Blogging Achievement. You can read the post called Bragging Rights, if you would like. I need you to vote for me by December 15th!! Visit Simonne’s entry post at All Tips And Tricks and make a comment. But, seriously folks, if you are a blogger give Simonne a courtesy. Matty at Running on Empty knew what to do (thank you dear). Simonne is offering cash prizes to the winner from her own pocketbook. The least she deserves is a little link love. Let me make it easy for you. Simply put the following at the bottom of one of your posts:
   

   Simonne at All Tips And Tricks is having a group writing project asking…’What is Your Best Blogging Achievement?’ You can see the entries here. I vote for Shelly to win.

   Make sure your links work and Bingo. How simple is that? I’m not even asking you to link back to me. I just want some postage money!! That $100 would send afghan kits to 6-10 volunteers.

3. If you have squares for me, please send them on! I’m trying hard to finish packaging the afghan kits before the end of the year.
4. Don’t worry about it if you have sent more squares than you needed to send. Nothing is going to waste. I made the following afghan from extra squares that Helen D. in San Antonio sent and used yarn that Matty had donated. I’ve got a request for one of the afghans for a child who won’t be at Camp Sanguinity. She’s related to a couple of the volunteers, and I hope to send this on to her during the winter when she can use it. I’m working on another stack of “extra”s right now to make another afghan. Although my “extra afghans” won’t have squares from 48 different people, all the love will be there.

I wasn’t brave enough to go to the post office today, because this is the stack of squares still in front of me:

Yours is probably in there. I’m trying to write thank you notes as I go. My gmail files are so wonky that I can’t find people’s addresses to send an e-mail. If I haven’t acknowledged your squares, please feel free to comment right here on this post and say, “Hey, Turkey! Have you gotten my squares yet?” You can quote me on that, but you’ll also have to tell me the names you put on your squares.

Now, last week, I got to meet with Cindy D (and her grand daughter Skyler) in Conroe, Texas to pick up the afghan that she had made and one that Carol had pieced together. She let me take a picture, so I’ll show it to you. Thank you Cindy, for your hard work…Carol, too. The afghans are pictured in the gallery.

Cindy and her friends Elke, Debbie, and Mary also contributed squares. Thank you, ladies!

I told you about Kathleen, who had given me 100 squares. I have so many of hers, that they are going into another “extra afghan.”

Liz, in Lancaster, PA sent along another batch. Thank you for these beauties, Liz, and for your donation!!

Marti, in Alaska is still crocheting away, too. I appreciate you, Marti

And, Nora L. is still churning out those beautiful ones that everyone wants to copy. She told me that you can find the pattern at Thorne’s World

Thank you to Sue S. in Nashville, IL for the beauties below.

I’ll keep working at snapping pictures. I promise to get more up tomorrow. Scout’s honor.

When she handed me her last batch of squares at the Denton Senior Center in October, Kathleen grinned up at me and asked, “Do I need to make any more?”

I laughed and told her, “No, ma’am. I think you have done your share.”

She nodded, and replied, “I said I would make a hundred for you and I did!”

Though she celebrated her 90th birthday in August, she didn’t let that stop her from giving back to the community. A hundred crocheted granny squares for Share A Square took a great deal of time, but she happily gave it.

“Time is something I’ve got plenty of,” she said. Kathleen was delighted that she could help send some love to children with cancer.

Yesterday at the Senior Center, I discovered that Kathleen Brown Lowrey had passed away at her home on Thanksgiving Day.

Take a moment to read her obituary, so you can know what a fine woman she was. Though I only talked with her briefly a few times, her light shone brightly. When you read this, you will know what I mean:

Kathleen Ruth Brown Lowrey passed away suddenly on Thursday morning, November 22, while preparing to spend Thanksgiving Day with friends and loved ones. She was born at home in the Argyle area to James W. “Jim” Brown and Ola Brown on August 8, 1917. She had enjoyed a surprise 90th birthday celebration given by her daughters Nancy, Lou, Ruth and her granddaughter Meggan this past August. The celebration was an especially joyful experience for her, because not only did local friends and family attend, but relatives from out of state came to wish her a happy birthday.

Kathleen lived all her life in Denton County, attending Pilot Knob and Argyle Elementary School. She attended Denton Junior High, Denton Senior High on Congress Street, graduating in 1934. She also attended the College of Industrial Arts (now Texas Woman’s University).

On January 3, 1937, she married Carroll E. Lowrey. They had three children: Charles Edwin Lowrey (deceased), Nancy K Lowrey, and L. Ruth Lowrey. While their daughters were growing up, Kathleen was a Girl Scout leader, room mother and sponsor for band and choir trips. She loved every aspect of her children’s school years. She especially enjoyed entertaining the many friends her children brought home. Kathleen always had enough food to make any meal stretch. Dinnertime was always special because of her delicious food and warm disposition. She never knew how many they would drag home, but it did not matter. She made the food work, and she made the meal look easy.

Later in life, she was a seamstress for TWU’s Dance Department and did clerical work for an insurance company and TWU. Retirement did not slow Kathleen down. She was a member of Beta Sigma Phi, Lioness Club, and Lions Club. She played cards with friends from the Denton Senior Center and stuffed envelopes at the Denton State School. She continued to enjoy cooking and made cookies with her granddaughter. She made peanut brittle and poppy seed cakes to deliver to the Denton Fire Department, her doctors and their staff members, her hairdresser, family and friends. She continued all of these activities and was prepared with food and gifts up until the moment of her death.

Kathleen was a founding member of the Asbury Methodist Church. She is survived by her daughters Nancy, Lou and Ruth, and her granddaughter Meggan, her nieces and nephews, their children and grandchildren.

I’m sitting here looking at the thank you card I had written to her but never took the time to stamp and mail. Yes, I thanked her in person, and she knew I appreciated her work—-but I didn’t follow through on the details.

I’ve got to go take the time to get my thank you notes in the mail.

Kids, I don’t ask y’all very often to write a post and link. But, that’s what I’m doing right now. I need YOUR help to win $100 for Share A Square. The expenses of postage and yarn are eating my finances alive, and now my computer is giving me every indication that it wants to curl up and die (so the expense of a new computer is in my near future). Consider that if you write a post you are contributing to help give 140 afghans to children with cancer at Camp Sanguinity next summer. You can see what we are doing at the afghan gallery.

A few days ago, I entered a group writing project sponsored by Simonne from All Tips And Tricks where she asked: “What is your best blogging achievement?” I decided that I had Bragging Rights with Share A Square. The entries are all in now. There are nine entries, and I’ve read them all. I still think I’ve got bragging rights.

I thought you would be able to just go in and vote, but Simonne wants you to write a post and link. So, here’s what I’m asking you to do (on bended knee) ASAP, or at least by December 15th:

First, read these nine entries:

Wanna know my best blogging achievement? by Paul Lamach

Best blogging achievement by Vivien

Bragging Rights by Shelly

Learning, my best achievement in blogging by Tclian

Blog your way into history by Aaron Stroud

My best blogging achievement by Pearl

My greatest achievements by Yeepage

The Crux Of JobMob by Jacob

LGR Webmaster Blog Best Blogging Achievement by LGR

Second, pick the three you like the best and write a short post listing them (of course, if you feel you can do it, give ME the top vote!).

Third, be sure to link to Simonne’s post, so she can find your vote.

That is ALL I am asking, and you KNOW I’d do this for you!

If you are NOT a blogger, and I don’t know if it would make any difference, go to Simonne’s post with the entries, and make a comment telling her that you vote for me. If enough of you do that, she might just consider me.

I’ll be happy to link to every darned one of you who will do this for Share A Square. I thank you, and my bank account thanks you.