Published: October 18, 2009 11:40 pm      

Persons of the Week: Seniors use knitting skills to help others

JOHNSTOWN — A group of knitters at the Jackson Township Senior Activity Center makes it a point to keep people warm.

For the past six years, the group has been threading their knitting and crocheting needles through mounds of colorful yarn to make scarves, hats and other items for people in need.

Every October, the women gather up the hundreds of items that they made during the last year and donate them to organizations that help people. They make the items at home and during weekly knitting sessions at the center, located in Vinco.

This past year was their best ever, with the women creating 576 hats, scarves, mittens and sweaters.

The items have been delivered to The Salvation Army in Johnstown, Community Action Partnership of Cambria County, the Retired Senior Volunteer Program in Johnstown, local churches and the Jackson Elementary School.

Most of the organizations received a mixture of the items while others received one type.

Betty Lou Shoup, one of the knitters, said the churches received all mittens and will hang them on Christmas trees during the holiday. Each church will then donate them to a charity, she said.

At Jackson Elementary, the pupils are not allowed to go outside for recess if it’s cold without wearing a hat, Shoup said. If they forget their hat one day, the school will have one of the knitted hats waiting for them, she said.

The women all like to knit or crochet, Shoup said.

“They don’t know what to do with all that they make,” she said in jest. “So they want it out of their homes, and that’s their good deed for the day.”

Gladys Howard, another knitter, said all the members of the group do nice work.

“We enjoy it, and we feel we are helping people,” she said.

Sara E. Davis, another knitter, said it’s important to serve others.

“People should do something to help people,” she said.

Ruth Reed, another member of the group, likewise said it’s important to help others.

“That’s the way we were brought up,” she said about the values she and the other knitters were taught.

The group appreciates all the yarn that is donated to them by the community, Reed said.

Jan Smith said knitting is a good pastime.

“I enjoy doing it because it is helping somebody else,” she said.

Dottie Harmotta, another knitter, said all the women in the group do a fine job of knitting.

“It’s rewarding,” she said about their work. “I feel good that I can help the different organizations.”

For their efforts, the six, all from the Jackson Township area, are the Persons of the Week.

Frank Singel, center president, said the women do a wonderful job and are dedicated to their program.

“They’re showing their talent and doing it for a good cause,” he said.

Kathy Bortz, controller for Community Action Partnership, said the knitting group has been donating items to them for six years and that the items will be distributed to children in the Head Start and Women, Infants and Children programs.

“The children love them,” she said.

“The kindness and dedication of the knitters is amazing,” she added.