The monthly meeting of the prayer shawl group of St. Andrew’s in Dartmouth, N.S. , is a joyful combination of prayer, business, refreshment, conversation and knitting.
The group, which is composed of 16 active members and 11 supportive knitters, provides shawls to people in need of encouragement and comfort. In four years, 262 shawls have been distributed to places such as Holland, Korea and Scotland. There are shawls from St. Andrew’s in every province and in most of the United States.
Christine McDonald proposed the idea in 2005 after learning about a prayer shawl ministry at Kildonan, Winnipeg.
The knitters, who range from their 30s to their 80s, knit on their own time and during monthly meetings held over tea and treats in members’ homes.
Children are given specially-made smaller shawls along with knitted stuffed animals. Catherine Picco, the group’s coordinator, believes the ministry benefits both the people who participate in the group and those who receive the shawls.
“It’s a good feeling to know you are sharing God’s love with others through knitting,” she said. “And the people who receive them know they are being thought about, prayed for and that they are not alone. God is present in their lives.”
