127 Bears Handed Out - Just in Time for Christmas

The past week has been a successful one for the Bear Necessities Project - we've managed to hand out 127 bears to foundation phase children in the wider Chintsa area, just in time for Christmas.

Children at Mzwini with their new friends

The first bear drop took place at Mzwini Daycare Centre in Mooiplaas where 60 knitted animals were delivered. The drop included some special creatures including stunning knitted elephants, mice and hippo's from supporter Julie Hoolie in the US, and 13 fun festive toys made by the grandmother of volunteer Nicole who recently passed away. Nicole was a part of the bear drop at Gwegwesha Pre-school in 2014 and wanted to ensure that her grandmothers stunning toys went to loving homes.

The second bear drop saw the African Angels foundation phase classes each getting bears at the end of the school term. 67 bears were delivered there in total - photos to follow!

I want to say a huge thank you to all of the Bear Necessities knitters - it's amazing to receive support from so many corners of the world - plus the team who facilitated the drop off and Mzwini. Thank you for supporting the Bear Necessities project :)

Bears, Bears, Bears Everywhere!

Apologies for such a delayed update on the Bear Necessities Project! We're still up and running and going strong - here's the latest news:

Latest Bear Hand-Outs

8th December 2014 - the lovely Lynne (I Left my Heart in Africa) and Sal (Buccaneers Backpackers) together with a team of little helpers created a fabulous teddy bears picnic for the youngest learners at Chefani School. The children enjoyed juice and a few sweet treats before taking their new friends home for the Summer holidays :)

3rd March 2015 - a team of Bear Necessities supporters including myself and my mum Sue (visiting from the UK - star knitter of bears ;) ) visited Ngxingxolo Preschool in the Mooiplaas village to deliver bears and sandwiches to the children at the school. A little overwhelmed by our presence the children tucked into their sandwiches and then joined in with a few songs and games. When we left some tried to give us their bears back not believing or understanding that they were theirs to keep and take home with them. It's always quite special for me when the official "hand out" is over and the children are playing and getting on with their own thing, bear in hand. As we drove away from the school I spotted a little boy on a bike with his bear riding in front of him - priceless :)

What's Next

Bears are coming in thick and fast - there are 30 ready to be handed out and another 50+ waiting for labels sewing before they are delivered. These bears will be handed out in the fourth term before the Summer holidays - keep an eye out for pictures of the hand-outs on this blog!

Thank you

As always, a huge huge thank you to all of the knitters, sewers, delivery ladies, sandwich and juice makers and everyone involved in this project. It wouldn't happen without you all.