The Busy Fingers knitting group lived up to its moniker in 2022, producing more than 3,000 items for veterans and other seniors, local women’s shelters, victims of fire who have been left out in the cold and anyone else in need of warmth during Ottawa’s long winters.

Members of the Busy Fingers knitting club gather for a group photo in Eileen McCaughey’s South Fallingbrook home. STAR PHOTO

Started in 2010 by Orléans resident Eileen McCaughey, the group now consists of more than 200 women including a group of nuns near Québec City.

The core group of about 20-30 women, meets the first and third Monday of each month in McCaughey’s South Fallingbrook home where they share their love of knitting and produce everything from small dolls and scarves to colourful afghans.

McCaughey, who is 89 years young, was in the middle of knitting an afghan in 2010 when her husband passed away just four days before Christmas. At the time, her son-in-law, who is a policeman, noticed what she was knitting the afghan and suggested she donate it to the Elder Abuse Section which could use it as a way to build trust with victims. Soon afterwards, McCaughey made other afghans for seniors who had suffered from elder abuse.

When word spread about her pet project, other knitters offered their services to help create the afghans.

Over the years, the group has grown to more than 200 members. Many of the knitters are either widows, or empty-nesters who have plenty of free time on their hands.

“It’s a way for them to keep busy and feel like they are doing something useful. It’s very therapeutic,” says McCaughey. “And the neat thing is they never know who they’re knitting for. They just know that it’s going to a good home.”

The reaction of the veterans and other seniors who receive the group’s items is truly heart-warming.

“Some of them cry because they’ve never received anything like that in their lives and they are just so thankful,” says McCaughey. “It makes me so happy to be doing that. It keeps me busy and it makes me feel great. I like to help people. It’s what keeps me going.”

With so many knitters working on so many items, the group has been able to expand their scope beyond veterans to maternity wards, women’s shelters, long-term care centres and hospices. All of the items are given out by Christmas.

“By Christmas whatever I have has to go out because it is not warming anyone in my basement,” says McCaughey, who only has one rule, everything must be given away. "We don’t take any money for anything.”

The only thing the group does accept is yarn. In fact, if it wasn’t for donated yarn the group wouldn’t exist. Unfortunately, due to the fact that the group has been so busy, they are very quickly running low on a variety of different colours.

McCaughey is hoping that by getting the word out, the balls of yarn will start rolling in again.

Anyone who wants to make a donation can call her at 613-841-3641 to arrange for the yarn to be dropped off, or picked up by a volunteer.