A local pensioner recently donated several beanies she has knitted herself to the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital’s Trust and soon will also be donating more to the Tygerberg Hospital Children’s Trust.
Arlette Marais, daughter of the 91-year-old Blanche (Barney) Meyer, says her mother has accumulated quite the collection of beanies. Last year on Friday 19 December, the family donated some of the beanies to the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital Trust. Arlette says they chose this hospital as it was their mother’s main support system when it came to getting medical attention for all her children.
Tygerberg Children’s Trust will be next, Arlette says.
Blanche is the founder of Barney’s Beanies. Arlette says her mother would welcome anyone who wants to learn and gave free knitting lessons. At one point her house was upgraded to include a dedicated knitting room, she says.
After almost 50 years, she decided to cut back and focus on her hand knitting more as a hobby. This time, knitting mostly jerseys and caps for family and friends. As she entered her later years, she reflected on her life journey with gratitude. What began as a childhood hobby had blossomed into a lifelong passion that not only supported her family but also enriched the lives of countless others, her daughter explains.
Currently, her mother focusses only on knitting babies’ beanies and has expressed her wish to donate these to especially vulnerable ones. With each stitch, she weaves a legacy of love, creativity, and community that would hopefully inspire future generations, says Arlette.
Family and friends gathered on Reconciliation Day last year (16 December) to package the beanies into sets of two with a written summary, in English, Xhosa and Afrikaans, of the intent behind the gift. These packs will be handed over to community medical facilities to be gifted to mothers of babies, especially newborns, Arlette explains.
