BELFAST, Maine — A group of local knitters is doing good together for their community through their needlework.
The volunteers call themselves the "Knit-Wits."
It all started when a group of Bank of America employees in Belfast decided to use their lunch breaks to help veterans and others.
That was the catalyst for the start of the group of ladies from Bank of America, Belfas—the year 2009.
The Knit-Wits give their hand-made blankets to area veterans.
"I made 20, another coworker made 20, but there was more than 20 veterans at Togus, [at] the rehab nursing area," Dawna-Jean Turchon, cofounder of the Knit-Wits, said.
The following year, the Knit-Wits delivered close to 150 blankets, not just for the Togus Veterans, but also to the Maine Veterans' Homes and the Bangor VA.
Turchon said that one veteran family couldn’t believe the Knit-Wits gave them hand-made blankets for free.
"We were all in the hall getting ready to go in the next room. His wife came out and said, 'This is a handmade blanket!' I said, 'I know.' She said, 'You made this for my husband?' We said, 'Yes we did! All of them are handmade.'"
Turchon said at that point she had to walk away because she started to cry. The veteran’s wife was amazed that the blanket wasn’t store-bought and that they were given a handmade blanket.
"I think that makes a lot of difference too because they really appreciate it," Turchon said.
By doing good, volunteers say they feel good while giving back to the community, especially to those who are lonely and in need at Christmastime.
"There are people who had no visitors, especially during the holidays... And here we are on Christmas Day. Saying 'Hi!' Here we are. Looked like Santa with big bags of blankets over our shoulders," Turchon said.
Not only do they supply veterans with knitted blankets, but also knitted scarves for Special Olympics athletes.
"It’s hard to say no," co-founder Joanna Deetjen said. "They are always a good cause. Sometimes I feel like I take on too many projects but then you send an email to the whole group, and you have 5-10 people who are like, 'Absolutely, I can work something out for that.'"
Now in their 14th year, the Knit Wits have hand-made over 700 blankets to give military veterans, especially at Christmas.