Jupiter, FL (October 10, 2011) – There is something about being an honors student that makes you want to leave the world a better place than you found it.  Students at Florida Atlantic University’s Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College have an impressive number of extracurricular opportunities to choose from, including sports, service work, artistic performance, and developing new hobbies. But this semester, one club on FAU’s MacArthur campus wants to put its artistic interests to the service of homeless people in south Florida.
            The student organization is known as the Yarnatics Club, and it was founded this fall semester by a group of students who shared a passion for knitting and crochet. Many students in the club were already skilled in these crafts before the semester began; other students have begun working on their very first yarn project with guidance from other club members. “I founded Yarnatics because I knew there was a group of Honors College students who were involved in yarn activities, and plenty more that wanted to learn, so a club would be a good way to get everybody together,” says club founder and president Sarah Harris. Originally, Yarnatics was intended to be solely a social organization, but it quickly evolved into something much more meaningful. Acting on the advice of the club’s faculty sponsor Sarah McHale, the Assistant Director of Career Development Center on the MacArthur campus, the Yarnatics Club began to explore the Humble Stitch Project, an initiative that distributes handmade scarves, hats, and gloves to members of the homeless community during the winter. “I decided to involve Humble Stitch because I always saw the club moving in the direction of becoming a service organization,” notes Harris. “As soon as I saw everyone’s enthusiasm, I thought we need to direct all that energy towards something that could make a real difference in our community.”
            One way in which the Yarnatics Club partners with Humble Stitch is acting as a drop-off center for handmade goods created in the Jupiter community. Kasey Minnis, the founder and organizer for the Humble Stitch Project, is excited about the additional support her project has gained among Wilkes Honors College students. “I’m tremendously grateful for the support of the students at FAU. For every participant, every item donated means another person stays warm this winter,” states Minnis. “Through the involvement of the Yarnatics, we’ve already been allowed to make FAU's Jupiter campus a drop-off location, which makes participation much easier for community members and helps to spread awareness of the project.” Yarnatics members are working steadily to produce handmade accessories before the final pick-up date in December, and have committed to providing ten percent of the Humble Stitch Project’s collected items. This project is of even greater importance in light of Florida’s recent changes in weather patterns; temperatures in South Florida have been lower in the last two winters than they have for over a century and a half. However, Minnis insists that the project does much more than just keep the homeless warm. “The reason for focusing on handmade items is to let our homeless neighbors know that people care about them. There’s still a significant stigma attached to homelessness, and each item donated is a message to someone without a home that a member of our community has compassion for them.”
            The Yarnatics Club is working to promote their project among other students and community members.  Those who can’t knit or crotchet are invited to donate yarn. Collection sites are being organized on the MacArthur campus, and students are encouraged to refer other crafters to the project. For these highly motivated honors students, crafting is not just a hobby, but also a unique opportunity to improve their community. “You can only make so many things for your friends and family,” says one club member. “We have found a way to let our hobbies touch lives and help people we may never meet. That makes every hat or scarf worth all of the effort.”

byline: WHC Student Intern Megan Geiger