Stories of Le Domaine Care - Knit2gether

This blog is the first of many to come that will share the stories of Le Domaine Care. Our residents have lived long lives full of wonderful escapades, and their stories deserve to be told. The knitting group of Le Domaine Care is a decade old tradition that began in 2008.  

In 2011, Leonie Dyer began running the group with a goal to keep the Friday morning meetings interesting and fun. She invited ladies from Le Domaine village and it quickly became a popular social event. The “knitting ladies” (as they were known) would knit little squares, which were sewn together by friends, family and staff to create full blankets.

With the number of knitters growing steadily at the Friday social event, the squares began to pile up until there were literally hundreds! Leonie Dyer suggested a new project that would change the groups course for good - to sew the hundreds of squares together and donate the blankets to people in need. This newfound cause energised the knitters who took on the task in earnest. The group began calling themselves “Knit2gether”, unified by a desire to help those less fortunate. It wasn’t long before the milestone of one hundred blankets was reached. In celebration, the blankets were displayed at the Le Domaine amphitheatre. It was a proud moment for the knitting group from Le Domaine Care. The first one hundred blankets were donated to the South African Family Relief Fund in 2014.

Once Knit2gether achieved their first donation, they set their sights on many others. When a Durban orphanage burned down in 2015, they delivered 20 blankets. When a request for aid was made by a local home called “The White House”, a consignment of blankets was sent in 2016. In 2017 a donation was made to “The Elders Voice” in Durban, followed by a timely donation to the Knysna relief efforts after the catastrophic fire. Recently, Knit2gether responded to the flash floods in Amanzimtoti by making a donation to the victims. There are currently about 18 ladies in the group including the three volunteer organisers: Leonie Dyer, Colleen Patric and Gill Greenwood. Every single member of the group makes a unique contribution – be it one square a month or 25 a week.

The common goal is the satisfaction of contributing to a worthy cause. Keeping somebody less privileged warm and snug. Special mention must be made for the outstanding work that Colleen Patric does in sewing together and finishing off each blanket with beautiful crochet borders. Knit2gether would be far less productive without her.

If you’d like to help Knit2gether, they will turn any wool donations (preferably double-knit) into blankets. You can drop off any spare or unused wool at the Le Domaine Care reception.