Bears and bears and bears - oh my!
Hello! It’s Cassie. Last weekend, I hosted a surgery bear-making party for the 7 Cities Crafters.
My infant son recently underwent surgery at CHKD and while we were in the waiting room, a nerve-racking experience to say the least, a volunteer approached us with a basket of wonky-but-charming handmade bears. She encouraged us to take one for our son, who at 3 months wouldn’t appreciate the gesture, but the generosity touched us – that people are compassionate enough to craft something for a child they’ll never meet.
Volunteers make the teddy bears for the children undergoing surgery at CHKD. Each child (or parent) is allowed to choose his/her own bear and for children who undergo multiple surgeries, it’s a souvenir they can look forward to collecting. It’s like getting to choose a plastic ring after a dentist visit.
So on that rainy Saturday night, we brought some leftover fabric to the table and started crafting.
Kristen and Agnes did most of the sewing, while others cut and stuffed.
For safety reasons, the faces must be drawn on with fabric marker. The later it got, the more creative the bear faces became. Each bear is one-of-a-kind with different fabric combinations and facial features/expressions.
Thanks to everyone who came! Enough was made to brighten the hospital experience for 20 children.
This entry was posted on Thursday, March 19th, 2009 at 5:03 pm and is filed under News, Workshop Report. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
March 19th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Mary says:Adorable!
You guys did such a great job. Wish I could have been there. We should definitely do this again - and consider doing more charity crafting. Thanks for hosting this. I remember the teddy bear I got at CHKD for my surgeries. It’s nice to have something to hold onto when you’re sick.
March 20th, 2009 at 3:12 pm
Truly says:looks awesome, sorry i couldn’t make it.
March 20th, 2009 at 11:44 pm
Ashley Pickin says:Yall did such a great job! I was sad that I couldn’t make it.. stupid work!
Is there anywhere to download the pattern to make bears to donate ourselves? Or do you have to sign up for a program of some sort?
March 25th, 2009 at 12:28 am
Ashley Pickin says:Found the pattern on the Kings Daughters website if anyone wants to give them a try at home.
http://www.kingsdaughters.org/pages/sewingpatterns.pdf
Cassie, is this the correct pattern?
March 25th, 2009 at 8:28 am
Cassie says:Yup, that’s it. The other knitting projects in the PDF linked look like a great charity craft, too.
March 26th, 2009 at 2:18 pm
Danica says:These are wonderful! What a great idea. Way to be proactive.
Danica
Fredericksburg, VA
via YouGrowGirl
April 1st, 2009 at 11:28 am
love says:This is so sweet of you guys to do. I remember having surgery as a kid a few times and I understand how nerve wrecking it was for me and my family. Glad to know people care=)