Teddy bears always manage to bring a smile to a child's face. Imagine how much bigger that smile must be when the bear is given to a child in need. Teddies for Tragedies sends knitted and crocheted teddy bears overseas to children in hospitals, orphanages and poor communities. The women at Westminster, Pierrefonds, Que., have been supporting the project for about two years, and just sent 300 bears away for distribution. "I look at these bears and I think, 'what a small thing and yet, what a big thing in a child's life,'" said Mary Lou De Silva, secretary at Westminster and part of the women's group that knits the bears. "Is this not what Christianity is all about?"
Teddies for Tragedies was originally started in Britain. The first batch went to Sudan in 1985, where a temporary orphanage was established in a refugee camp for 2,000 children with tuberculosis. Since then, teddies have been sent to Mexico, Lebanon, Romania, Costa Rica and Brazil, to name just a few places. More than 400 volunteers knit bears in Canada, the United States, Australia and Europe.
Doctors working in developing countries have said the bears are just as important to healing as the medical treatment children receive. De Silva is encouraged by such stories. "It's heartening to hear where the bears go and how well they're received," she said. "I heard a story where children were getting injections and they cried, until they got a bear."
The 15 to 20 women in the "work party" at Westminster meet every Wednesday to have tea, knit bears, enjoy fellowship and pray for the safe arrival of the bears to wherever they are most needed.
De Silva said there is little cost to the knitters themselves, as most of the materials are donated. She said the only real expense is mailing the bears to Liz McCrindle of Puslinch, Ont., who coordinates how they will be distributed. McCrindle brought the pattern for the bears from Scotland. She hosts an annual teddy tea party where knitters are welcomed into her home to drop off their bears and meet other volunteers. Last year, 70 women showed up, which is why Duff's, Puslinch, hosted this year's October event. McCrindle collected 5,000 bears from across Canada in 2004. "Ladies come with garbage bagfuls of bears they've knitted all year!" she said. "It's really snowballed."
The program has recently partnered with Samaritan's Purse, which encourages the teddies to go into boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Several other charities help McCrindle distribute the bears around the globe.
Volunteers who are unable to knit, crochet or sew, can help by donating wool, stuffing or material. And there is always a need for willing travellers to can take bears with them.
How To Make A Teddie
Full instructions are given below. They are very simple and quick to make. If you can make a little bag for your teddy (details below), that would be most welcome, but if not, it doesn't matter.
- 1 pair size 10 knitting needles (3.5 mm) Teddies should be between 10-12 inches
Double knitting wool:
- Main colour must be fawn shade for head and paws
- Trouser colour should be bright and cheerful
- Jumper colour should be bright and cheerful
- Scarf colour should be bright and cheerful
- Stuffing must only be polyester or other healthy padding. Foam rubber is not recommended as babies may chew it
Please do not deviate from the pattern as we like all Teddies to look the same.
- Cast on 10 stitches of main colour.
- Knit 10 rows.
- Change to trouser colour and knit 30 rows.
- Make another leg the same way.
- Knit across all 20 stitches and work 16 rows.
- Change to jumper colour and knit 24 rows.
- Change to main colour for head and also change to stocking stitch. Work for 5 ½ inches.
- Change to jumper colour. Continue remainder of Teddy in reverse order.
- Stitch down the sides of the head.
- With jumper colour, pick up 8 stitches either side of neck.
- Join (16 stitches in all) and knit 20 rows.
- Change to main colour and knit 10 rows for paws.
- Sew up Teddy leaving opening in crotch. Sew diagonal top corners for ears before stuffing. After stuffing has been inserted, run a thread through the knitting around the neck to draw it in.
- Sew happy face on Teddy. For mouth, please us either stem stitch or back stitch.
- Scarf: Cast on 75 stitches. Knit 4 rows. Cast off. Tie scarf on Teddy and sew firmly to back of neck, close to jumper edge. (Do not sew down at front)
Teddies also require little bags made from material with a drawstring at the top. Finished size should be 10 inches x 13 inches. Please do not use elastic as drawstring.
