{"id":26572,"date":"2012-11-01T16:24:35","date_gmt":"2012-11-01T23:24:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.worldvision.org\/?p=26572"},"modified":"2019-03-29T13:38:26","modified_gmt":"2019-03-29T20:38:26","slug":"author-debbie-macomber-love-every-stitch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.worldvision.org\/charitable-giving-news-stories\/author-debbie-macomber-love-every-stitch","title":{"rendered":"Author Debbie Macomber puts love in every stitch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It started out as an accident early one morning at the Newark airport, Debbie Macomber<\/a> remembers. She struggled to balance luggage, her purse, a knitting project, and a steaming cup of coffee — which soon spilled across the floor. A stranger waiting in the long Starbucks line witnessed her dilemma and bought her another cup.<\/p>\n

“All the way home, I just had this really good feeling,” recalls Debbie, The New York Times<\/em> best-selling author who lives in Port Orchard, Washington. “I kept thinking about all the little ways we have to be generous without it costing us very much.”<\/p>\n

The stranger’s simple act inspired Debbie to practice that same generosity herself — including writing a devotional book on generosity, “One Simple Act.” Now Debbie is extending the concept to crafters in her new role as international spokesperson for Knit for Kids<\/a>, World Vision’s program that encourages those who knit and crochet to craft warm clothes for children in need around the world.<\/p>\n

Knitters by nature are generous. If you’re a knitter you have a heart — a big heart.—Debbie Macomber<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n

In 2011, knitters donated 66,000 sweaters to World Vision’s Knit for Kids. But the need is still great. World Vision field staff report that 900,000 children need sweaters and more than 1 million infants and toddlers need caps and blankets to help them survive their first highly vulnerable years.<\/p>\n

Debbie inherited her knack for knitting from her grandmother. Because Debbie had dyslexia, she didn’t learn to read until she was 10. So she pursued non-reading activities, including pestering her mother to take her to the yarn store where local women taught Debbie the craft.<\/p>\n

For the past three years, Debbie has led her own national charity initiative, Knit One Bless Two<\/a>, encouraging others to donate handmade sweaters, hats, or blankets to those in need. She believes that knitters convey a message of love with each small stitch and the gift of hand-knitted clothes is a warm reminder to children that someone thought about them.<\/p>\n

The international scope of World Vision’s work appeals to the author, whose books are best-sellers around the globe. “This has the potential of really reaching a lot more people,” Debbie says. “Knitters by nature are generous. If you’re a knitter you have a heart — a big heart.”<\/p>\n