Aloha Lahaina. It's a hat.
So I'm a knitter. It's what I do. And there were multiple fires here on Maui. I can't do anything about getting the fires out, or helping the clean up, or many things that need to be done.
But I did what could be done, I knit, and created a new hat design. Then I got some big help from Jimmy Beans Wool, which is a very fantabulously large yarn shop in Reno, Nevada. Jimmy Beans crew stepped up to get the pattern published and sold.
Portions of the yarns they sell for the hat, and all my proceeds from the sales of the pattern go directly to KHAKO Homeless Resource Center, and their low income housing facility here on Maui. KHAKO lost their entire Lahaina facility in the fire, and while their Wailuku site is unharmed, they are trying to help more people with fewer resources. If you've ever worked in the helping industry, you know how that goes.
Mahalo to JBW, and all the knitters who helped make this happen. Everyone hustled to make all this work happen in a week.
I've cried a lot during this time, and this time it's finally happy tears.
So the swatch ( sample) in the picture became this prototype. It's called Aloha Lahaina. Aloha means a lot of things: hello, goodbye, fondness, love. It's pretty much what happened there. We said goodbye to Lahaina town, a place of both love and fondness for many people. We are all waiting to say hello to Lahaina town again. It's going to be a long time, but I believe, and know, we can do it.
If you know a knitter, or other yarn person, please pass this on. It's going to help.
Mahalo and aloha. Stay safe. Be well.
