Share the love with 67 Blankets
The KnitWits for Madiba will be hosting a ''hook-up'' event where 'KnitWits' will be able to spread their blankets on Nelson Mandela statues around the country.
As we start feeling the cold touch of winter’s hand, and political tremors leave a chill in the heart, it is warming to know that the KnitWits for Madiba are getting ready to spread love and comfort.
On 23 April from 9am to 4pm, 67 Blankets will be hosting a family Hook-Up Day where KnitWits across the country will be spreading their blankets around the various statues of Nelson Mandela in a colourful reminder of Madiba’s legacy. The blankets will then be handed over and distributed to those in need.
The non-profit organisation was founded by Carolyn Steyn in response to Mandela’s former private secretary, Zelda la Grange’s challenge to knit 67 blankets for Nelson Mandela Day. Since then, the NPO has grown from 67 blankets to 670 blankets, to a world record-breaking 27 000 blankets all of which are donated to those in need. In the process, 67 Blankets claimed the Guinness World Record for Largest Crochet Blanket in the World in 2015.
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Throughout the year, people from all walks of life, including prisoners and students pour care and compassion into their knitting, stitching the country together one stitch at a time. 67 Blankets has grown into an international movement, with KnitWits in many countries donating blankets in the name of Madiba.
In partnership with the Department of Correctional Services, 67 Blankets started the Knitting Broken Lives and our Nation Together initiative that gives inmates an opportunity to give back to communities that have been affected by crime and poverty. Knitting and crocheting blankets have given thousands of inmates, both men and women, a sense of industry and purpose, assisting them in their rehabilitation and providing skills development behind bars.
“67 Blankets has changed my life – and many lives. It has become my raison d’etre. What I have learned over the past three years is the importance of alliance, partnership, friendship and relationships embodying trust, respect, kindness and common purpose. None of what we have collectively achieved would have been remotely possible without these elements. And together we have achieved some great things,” said Steyn
Bring your family, your picnic basket and your knitting and celebrate 67 Blankets’ remarkable achievement.
There will be two events in Johannesburg. The one event will be held at Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton City from 9am to 3pm. The second event will take place at the Nelson Mandela Foundation in Houghton from 9am to 2pm.
