Knitting Circle in Rancho Bernardo helping hundreds of homeless people stay warm this winter

When the Knitting Circle at the Ed Brown Center for Active Adults started knitting and crocheting scarves and hats for the homeless, the members had no idea how many they would actually make.

After spending a year on the project, the 20 volunteers made 300 scarves and 250 hats.

“I never thought we’d make this many,” said Sue Gupta, who has been leading the group with co-chairs Chris Bodle and Nancy Sutter.

The Knitting Circle started meeting for two hours each Friday afternoon last November. Only four people, including Gupta, came to those early gatherings at the center in Rancho Bernardo Community Park.

But as word spread, more volunteers dropped in. Some came every week. Others, like Lynn Wolsey, came occasionally. Some did their knitting and crocheting during those gatherings. Others opted to just pick up yarn and patterns so they could make scarves or hats at home.

Gupta said at least 20 people — mostly women, but a couple men too — have been involved with the project. Around 10 showed up on a weekly basis.

Their efforts will mean hundreds of homeless individuals served by the Third Avenue Charitable Organization — aka TACO — in downtown San Diego will receive the hats and scarves in the holiday gift packages they will receive in mid-December, Gupta said. TACO will be adding other essentials to the packages as well, such as toiletries.

Bodle and Sutter, who through their church serve dinners to the homeless at TACO a couple times a week, brought the Knitting Circle together with the organization, Gupta said.

She added that the philanthropic project would not have been possible without the donations from community members who read in the Rancho Bernardo News Journal and Poway News Chieftain that yarn was needed. Gupta said many locals started cleaning out their closets in order to donate balls of yarn.

“I was overwhelmed by the reaction from the community,” Gupta said, noting The Remington Club and Casa de las Campanas not only offered yarn from its residents but knitting and crocheting needles too.

For the time being, no more donations are needed, Wolsey said. The center has two closets full of yarn in a wide variety of colors. She estimated the current supply will last at least six months.

Now that the scarves and hats are made, the members are pivoting to making a Santa decoration that will be given to EBC members next month, Gupta said. Soon the Knitting Circle members will take a break for the holidays, then resume in January with a new project.

She does not yet know if it will involve hats and scarves again or something else.

“Everyone wants to keep doing it,” Wolsey said. “We all enjoyed it. It has been really fun.”

Anyone is welcome to join the Knitting Circle. There is no cost and participants do not need to be Ed Brown Center members. They can work on personal projects or whatever philanthropic project the circle chooses for next year. For details, call Gupta at 858-205-9728.