Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. What year
were you founded? How did you start?
Warm Hands Network was started in 2007. At
that time two friends were looking for a way to turn
our 40th birthday celebration into something
meaningful. What started as a campaign to
collect 50 items for a community in Northern
Labrador turned into a project that has spanned over
a decade, with 500+ contributors from around the
world and over 10,000 items provided to partner
communities across Canada's North, as well as in
Ottawa. Anita and Catriona now manage the
logistics of the Warm Hands Network, working with a
small but mighty team of Ottawa based knitters and
crocheters.
2. Who have
you shipped to?
In the past Warm Hands Network has sent items to
Afghanistan, Mongolia, Northern Labrador (Canada),
Moosonee (Canada) , Rankin Inlet (Canada), Gjoa
Haven (Canada), Pond Inlet (Canada), Innuvik
(Canada), Iqualuit (Canada), Cape Dorset (Canada),
Arviat (Canada), Kugluktuk (Canada) and Resolute Bay
(Canada). For details about our current campaign,
see the Campaigns
page.
3. What are
your collection dates?
We currently ship about 4 times per year. However,
if free shipping opportunities arise, we will ship
more frequently.
4. What do
you send?
We send hand knit and crochet items. Please
see the Guidelines
pages for more details (size, fiber, washability,
etc). We also collect craft supplies (beads,
yarn, thread, needles, scissors, needles, hooks,
etc). When we have space in our shipments, we
sometimes send fur coats which can be repurposed
into mitten liners, kamik (boot) liners and hood
fringe.
5. How are items
distributed?
We partner locally with schools and clinics, among
others, to distribute items in northern
communities. In addition, we provide hand-knit
clothing to organizations here in Ottawa that have
ties to the North. We like that our grassroots
organization is working through similar grassroots
organizations on the ground in these
communities. Person to person, we are working
to make a difference.
6. Where do our contributed items come from?
Approximately 50% of our items come from Canada the
rest are from International crafters. We have
many contributors from the USA and have also
received parcels from Australia, Singaport, Japan
and Germany.
7. How can I help?
We are delighted to have a core of long-term
crafters who create lovely items for us towards each
campaign. However, we can always use more
knitters and crocheters to help us. Please
consider making items for us. And also invite
your friends to join you in crafting items for
us. The more the merrier! We have print
at home business cards and a print
at home Poster you can use to help spread the
word. Finally, if you are in the Ottawa area,
we can always use a few more hands to help with
sorting items, etc. Please contact us if you are
local and available to help out.
8. I can't knit or crochet, but I want to get
involved. Can we make it work?
You bet we can! Email us
and we'll find a way. If you are a school or a
community group, let's talk. If you're an
individual who would like to make an "in-kind"
donation, you're someone we want to get to
know. We also have a few donors who sew items
for us. |
