Knit Wits Give the Gift of Creativity

Caroline Serle, Helen Phillips, and Eileen Bartsch (left to right) enjoy visiting as their needles click.

Caroline Serle, Helen Phillips, and Eileen Bartsch (left to right) enjoy visiting as their needles click.

Suzanne Marlatt-Stewart

Several community organizations and clubs donate to Senior Village at SaddleBrooke, either with monetary contributions or through their handcrafted creations. The Knit Wits club is one of these generous groups.

Each Wednesday from 9 to 11:30 a.m., over 75 women gather in the craft room across from the SaddleBrooke One Gift Shop. They have a short meeting, maybe a guest speaker, and show and tell. They then break into groups, knit, and visit. The knitters range from advanced to beginners in their skill levels.

Twice a month, Senior Village honors birthdays at a luncheon, which members are invited to attend. The guests can enter a raffle for a chance to win an item that the Knit Wits have donated. Examples of popular items may include “scrubbies” (shower cloths), “mug rugs” (coasters), or “lap rugs” (lap placemats). Knit Wits purchases the materials for these items and the women volunteer to knit them.

The group also contributes to holiday baskets for some of the Senior Village members which contain their knitted items. Grateful members expressed their appreciation in these words:

“I just want to let you know that I received a lovely Christmas basket. I’m very touched. I don’t remember the last time I had a Christmas present and such a nice array of gifts. Like I said, I am very touched and very grateful for it. I thank you very, very much.”

“I just received a Christmas basket. It’s lovely. Thank you very much. So many goodies and I have to thank you again. I’ll enjoy it.”

Linda Hood is the coordinator of services for the Knit Wits. She noted that the group has other worthwhile projects. One is called “Knitted Knockers” which are prostheses for women who have had a mastectomy. This item is available for all women who have had this surgery. Another activity is supplying knitted baby items to mothers at Tucson’s Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.

This club just keeps spreading their creative love in so many ways. Senior Village thanks all of the talented knitters for their generosity.

To become a member of Senior Village, call 520-314-1042 or visit seniorvillage.org.