The latest Awesome Ottawa award goes to Granny Squares for Warmth to support their crocheting for our community.

“Granny Squares for Warmth,” explains the group's Holly Beanlands, “is a group of Ottawa women using our love of crocheting to keep others warm. We work in a variety of sizes including baby blankets, lap blankets, cancer care blankets, throws, single-bed blankets, and shawls to donate to a range of recipients including maternity units, shelters, long-term care homes, seniors residences, cancer treatment centres, transitional housing, and organizations that help equip new Canadians.”

“Our work has travelled as far north as maternity units in Nunavut, but most of our blankets and shawls stay local and help people at places like Perley Health for veterans, St Joe's Women's Centre for homeless women, Bethany Hope Centre for single parent families, a number of Canadian Legion branches, and the Ottawa Cancer Clinic.”

“To a lonely senior, an anxious patient undergoing cancer treatment, someone experiencing their first winter in Canada or a young single parent struggling to cope with the stress and expense of baby,” continues Holly, “a handmade piece provides not only physical warmth but also a reminder that someone cares. We love to create and we love knowing that our creations help bring a little warmth and a smile to others.”

“Our group was started by two Barrhaven women, Pat Owen and Suha Daher, during the COVID lockdowns,” says Holly. “The idea was to crochet granny squares that could be joined together in various ways and sizes to help people in our community and beyond in a variety of ways. Once lockdown ended, the word spread and our group, mainly retired women in Barrhaven, has now grown to dozens of members who meet once a month and create blankets between meetings.”

The group will use the funds to purchase yarn. “Most of our crocheters are retirees,” says Holly. “They happily give of their time but sometimes the cost of yarn for a project can be a deterrent given that, since the pandemic, yarn prices have steadily risen. We want to keep our creative members supplied with yarn so they can keep producing blankets and shawls to donate and help others.”