Knit One Give One: Knitting toys and blankets for those in need

JOY Bourne long ago lost count of the number of wool yarns she uses each year.

Toys galore: Knit One Give One volunteer Joy Bourne knits toys for the underprivileged, including Christmas appeals. Picture: Chloe Smith

JOY Bourne long ago lost count of the number of wool yarns she uses each year.

After a rough calculation she estimates she makes about 300 rabbits a year for the Royal Children’s Hospital and about 70 other animals from kangaroos to hippopotamuses — some as high as half a metre tall — to donate at Christmas and for gift boxes for those doing it tough.

And given she started making the stuffed toys around 2004 for the charity Knit One Give One (KOGO).

All up, that’s a lot of wool.

“I’ve always enjoyed knitting, making clothes for my own children when they were babies,” says Joy, who lives in Gisborne.

“So when KOGO first began I joined straight away.

“My toys have been sent to mothers in refuges, farming families in the drought, and even remote Aboriginal communities where the children apparently didn’t even understand the concept of toys.

“It’s lovely to make something for someone who appreciates it.”

Joy says she was one of the first KOGO volunteers and now she is about one of 5000 who click their needles for a good cause.

KOGO was started in 2004 by Ros Rogers, who rallied friends and families to knit 180 scarfs for the homeless during a cold winter.

Busy: Knit One Give One co-ordinator Lee Ridder and founder Ros Rogers. Picture: Josie Hayden

“I thought it would be a one-off,” says Ros. “Then a friend suggested we make beanies the following year. It’s since grown by about 10 per cent a year and last year we distributed 78,000 items around Victoria, including about 5000 blankets.”

KOGO has grown to a network of volunteers across Victoria.

Finished items are distributed through more than 300 agencies.

Volunteers now knit year-round, for winter, as well as a Christmas appeal and the Royal Children’s Hospital at Easter, as well as gift packs for new mums.

The organisation’s website offers an array of patterns, but Ros says the charity accepts whatever people like to knit or crochet, including clothes for babies, children and adults, with blankets most in demand.

Once a year Ros holds a get-together of all knitters, where speakers from agencies share stories about how donations help recipients.

While there are 60 drop-off points for knitted products around Victoria, about 25 volunteers meet once a week in the group’s Melbourne headquarters to unpack all items, label, sort and then distribute them to agencies.

“We used to operate out of my house but once it got over the 3000 item mark we had to move. So rent and freight are our biggest costs,” Ros says.

While Ros dedicates all her time to the not-for-profit, ironically she no longer knits for KOGO.

“I love knitting but I’ve now got eight grandchildren so I knit for them. Ironic, isn’t it?”