Knitting Hats Keeps Kids Warm, and Seniors Busy
A tip of the hat to viewer Chris Rader of Wenatchee, Washington for giving us a tip about some hats - and the woman who makes them. CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric has this edition of "The American Spirit."
(CBS) WENATCHEE, Wash.. - In the close-knit community of Wenatchee, Washington Aida Bound has found joy in knitting. But the 73-year-old social worker wasn't content to make baby booties and mittens for her grandchildren. She decided she could keep kids warm and seniors busy.
"These hats are made with love," Bound said.
Her yarn starts at a local retirement center, where many elderly residents were more than happy to find a stitch in time.
"She handed me a crochet hook and said go to it," Todd Petit said.
"I can't do very much," said Levine Jackson. "But I can sit and do this and keeps me busy keeps my mind occupied."
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It's also good for the heart - literally. A recent Harvard study found that knitting can actually lower blood pressure.
After thanking the seniors, Bound took the hats to kids in a local homeless shelter.
"This hat looks like I'm from Paris," one kid said.
The kids don't have hats, or homes. All told, thanks to Aida and her helpers, nearly 15,000 hats have been donated. Now she's known simply as "the hat lady.
"It's a cycle where they make the hats and they feel better and the children pick them up and feel it," Bound said. "You can see it in their faces they don't have to say anything."
"I would like to say thank you to the hat lady," one of the kids said. "Thank you for the hats."
The hats are a simple gift that spreads plenty of love and delight.