I lost a favorite cousin this year, Evie Rosen, and the world lost an advocate for the less fortunate.
We never lived near each other, but Evie was always at our significant birthdays and anniversaries and visited us in North Dakota, Minnesota and California.
Evie learned to knit as a child and taught thousands how to knit through classes and her published patterns and books.
In the early 1990s when homelessness was becoming a national crisis, she began knitting afghans for a local homeless shelter. Realizing that the need far exceeded her abilities, she began Warm Up America, where individuals knit or crochet squares which are assembled into afghans. She teamed up with the National NeedleArts Association and Warm Up America and over 300,000 afghans have been donated to those in need around the globe.
She inspired me to follow my passion and to use my talents for others. I've just joined the Board of Directors of the Neighborhood Involvement Program, which serves those in need with medical, dental and mental health services. And I am knitting afghans.
