Volunteer Spotlight: Almost A Decade Of Knitting Tiny Sweaters

As a former school teacher, Lynda Cormack brightened the lives of her elementary school students each day. Yet, Lynda's heart overflowed with a passion that extended beyond the classroom walls.

Almost a decade ago, while watching her grandson play at a charity hockey tournament, featuring Sheldon Kennedy and the Calgary Flames, Lynda got her first introduction to Luna, which was then called the Sheldon Kennedy Child Advocacy Centre.

"After the tournament, it was actually my daughter who told me about the gifting room at Luna," Lynda said.

"I made discovery pillows at the time and went to the centre to donate some of them. While at the centre, a lady named Emily asked me if I happen to knit. My husband motioned 'No'. But I do knit," she reminisced.

Armed with her knitting needles and a heart full of compassion, Lynda embarked on a mission to spread warmth and comfort to children in need. Now with someone to knit sweaters, the only thing left was to find something to wear them.

"The centre needed bears for the sweaters, and they were around $20 per bear. One day I was at the Calendar Company and I found a stuffed bear for $5.99," she explained.

"They sell them for charity at Christmas. When asked how many bears I needed, I jokingly said 500. They said they only had 200 at Market Mall and 300 at South Centre Mall. Because it was for charity, they gave them to me for free! My car could only handle 300 at a time. They have been supplying us with bears ever since."

With a steady supply of bears and a growing team of volunteers recruited, Lynda's knitting mission flourished.

"I was in two knitting groups at the time: The Crowfoot Library and the Carrol Place Centre. The Carrol Place ladies are still knitting sweaters, for Luna, to this day," she proudly declared.

"This was eight years ago when we started knitting for Luna, and we have done hundreds of sweaters for the Calgary Police, RCMP and Luna. Now we also do capes for some stuffed puppies," Lynda explained.

With meticulous care, Lynda and the Carrol Place ladies adorn each sweater with intricate crests, pouring love into every stitch. "I was an elementary school teacher, and I love children. If a Teddy Bear can bring comfort to a child in crisis, why not?" she remarked.

To this day, Lynda Cormack, and the ladies from the Carrol Place Centre, continue to knit, stitch and share light to those who need it most. Thank you to Lynda and the Carrol Place Centre knitting group for the dedication and commitment to Luna over the years!

Luna would like to thank the Carrol Place Centre Knitting Group for their generosity: Bonnie Bell, Pat McCutcheon, Shirley Ware, Lesley Cooney-Burke, Claire Bailey, Katheryn Byrnes, Mary McConnell, Rita Light, Jean Cuff, Jennifer Byrnes, Cathy Potter and Arlyne Larsen.

To view Luna’s current volunteer opportunities, click here.