Our Dear Cathy Riley has passed away.
Cath and Estelle in the KAS BARN in October 2019.
KAS received some very sad news from Estelle on March 9, after a long illness Cathy Riley has passed away. Cath was a staunch supporter of KAS and its efforts to warm children in South Africa. She donated enough granny squares to create over 1000 KAS blankets. Many team members had the opportunity to sew these amazing creations together.
We are asking contributors to make a Granny Square, or more, for a Memorial Blanket for Cathy. When you send them to SA please not that they are for the Cathy Riley Blanket. Our team members will sew together all the received squares into blankets. Below are some of the blankets that passed through The Barn with Cathy's squares for inspriation.
Here is an interview Leanne Hunt had with Cathy in August of 2020.
A visit to The Barn in 2016 by Cathy Riley:
https://square-circle-forum3.ning.com/forum/topics/snippets-from-you-our-guest-writers-1
Volunteer for a Day
by Cath Riley
__________
For me, the KAS experience started nearly 2 years ago when I found the Website and started making squares. Recently retired, I had lots of time so I got stuck in - and it took over my life!
In July last year I broke my arm, which meant we couldn't go on our annual holiday in the Dordogne in France. This year, we decided to visit the Knit-a-Square offices in S.A. to meet the people I had seen in the Forum photos. Ronda and Estelle encouraged me, and as we have family in SA we combined it with a holiday.
After a great time with family, staying in game lodges, Safari drives etc., we went to the KAS S.A. office on opening day. My dream had come true! It was surreal to actually be there, an emotional experience.
It was what they called a slow day as there was not much post. After introductions and chatting, we started opening parcels. The first one, which had 70 beautiful squares, did not have a packing slip! There was a large box with over 600 squares and what a job it was sorting them out! There were all sorts of shapes, sizes, and weights, and we must have had 20 different piles of sizes - not one of them with a tail, let alone butterflied. It was a back breaking job for all concerned. I realized then how important the correct size is, and also to put them in some sort of order when we send them.
I spent some time chatting to Ronda who told me some of the difficulties - first and foremost is getting enough volunteers. She could do with so many more to make life easier, although there are the regulars who turn up every week and are very loyal. The financial situation has eased slightly thanks to the fund raising efforts, pay for a day, and monthly contributions. She mentioned how valuable all those $5 contributions are. Now there is the KAS shop. All the monies from that go directly to Ronda in SA. I urge everyone who can to visit the shop and purchase items, as this will help greatly and make everyone's job easier.
We stopped in the middle of the day for a lovely lunch made by Estelle - homemade quiche and a beautiful salad - and we had time to chat some more. Ronda, Estelle, Wendy, Molly, Wandi, Linde, and Joel are now real people to me, not just faces in photos. They do a wonderful job which is very tiring, but so worthwhile.
We were unable to go on a distribution due to time constraints, but I think Ronda was relieved as it was far too hot for the children to put on the blankets, hats and hand warmers to show us how happy and appreciative they were.
Who would have thought that such a simple idea of making and sending 8" squares would grow into such a wonderful organization, keeping so many children warm on cold South African nights. Children who have nothing - and I really mean nothing - are provided with warmth and comfort and love. On our travels we passed the informal settlement of Diepsloot and what a sad, depressing sight it was. There was an uncountable number of shacks made from all manner of things and the place seemed to stretch for miles. Ronda said that it is a terrible place, full of crime, rape and murder. The team are very brave to distribute in such places, though it is the place where they are most needed. Hats off to them!!
I had a wonderful day and the welcome I received was fantastic. Rest assured that this is a fantastic organization run by caring, hardworking people, and I, for one, am proud to be a little part of it. I will continue to support it in any way I can.
We can't wait to see your tribute squares in this discussion so we can imagine the new blankets that will be created to honor Cathy.
Replies
I'm so sad to hear of Cath's passing . I remmember those colorful blankets - tons of them - she created. A kind lady with a generous heart.
Adding these sweet squares from Mireille.
We have received some of your squares for Cath's blanket thank you Mirielle.
Merci Estelle : 10 autres carrés pour la couverture souvenir partiront le mois prochain.
THESE ARE SO PRETTY!
I've been absent from the site for a few weeks now, and am just trying to catch up. It is very sad to learn of Cath Riley's passing; she did so much for KAS!
I used up the very last bits of pink yarn for one square, and added a few squares in shades of purple. As usual, the camera has its own idea of what these colors look like. I hope they will work for the Memorial Blanket.
Superbes carrés Sharon : on voit tout de même que les couleurs sont très belles.
They are perfect Sharon.
These are lovely, Sharon. They will definitely be perfect for the blanket/s.
Six textured squares for Cath's blanket/s. On both patterns the edges and the bottoms tended to curl a little, but I'm sure they'll be fine when sewn together.
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