Hats, Huts and Hugs

Hats, Huts and Hugs

Grade Four teachers Michelle Koenig and Audrey Pavelich along with their 55 grade four students at Crestwood School will:
1. Learn how to knit scarves and toques to help homeless people in our community keep warm during the winter.
2. Create an environmentally safe way to reduce the mosquito population in our community by researching bats. Then building bat houses to encourage bats to thrive, thereby reducing the amount of mosquito bites to our students and potential threat of West Nile disease.
Both projects will be accomplished through the involvement of volunteers (seniors) living in and around our Crestwood School neighborhood, teaching us to knit and assisting with the construction of the bat houses.

Update (March 24, 2012)

The Grade Four Students at Crestwood School, along with Totem Building Supplies and many volunteer helpers, built thirty bat boxes in November 2011. Hoping to reduce the number of mosquito and wasps in our neighborhood this summer, four of the boxes stayed at Crestwood School. The other twenty-six were donated to Police Point Nature Centre.

In December our 4-C class began the knitting of hats and neck warmers for the Medicine Hat Salvation Army Homeless Shelter. Twenty-one knit articles were completed and the looms were then passed on to our 4-A class. Following the completion of their hats and neck warmers we will have our 4-B class begin their knitting. We will have approximately fifty hats and neck warmers to donate to the needy.

Update (July 2, 2012)

The Hats, Huts and Hugs project has finally been completed! Our hats were presented to Betty Gader of the Medicine Hat Salvation Army. She was excited to receive them on behalf of all those who would be in need of warm clothing this winter. Our geocaching event was enjoyed by students and volunteers alike, culminating with a big group hug as a thank you!