Held in partnership with the Susquehanna Valley Big Twins Motorcycle Club, the Knit N’ Run was designed to distribute items made by the PSM needleworkers by the bikers to personal care homes, nursing homes and hospitals in our area.

This year marks the 13th year that bikers will rev up their engines and set out to make their deliveries of the colorful items the PSM needleworkers have created over the last year.

In addition to handing out items such as lap robes and prayer shawls to elderly residents in local facilities such as Eagle Ridge and Fulmer’s Personal Care homes, the bikers also spend a few moments visiting with the residents and bringing joy to those they encounter there.

Humble Beginnings

TAMMY COAKLEY/FOR THE EXPRESS Many colorful items made by needleworkers of the Prayer Shawl Ministry are shown.

When Pastor Susan Champion first began the PSM some 18 years ago, there were only a handful of needleworkers who embraced her vision.

After many prayers and following years of inviting and encouraging other needleworkers to become involved, some 40 members gather regularly, once a month, to drop off their finished projects — everything from tiny hats for newborn babies to twin sized bed quilts — and to collect more skeins of yarn to create more items that are donated to those in need.

“Needleworkers — those men and women who crochet, knit or sew — are an essential part of the Prayer Shawl Ministry. In addition to those who come regularly, we probably have another 25-30 needleworkers who send their donated projects to us with others who come to the monthly meetings. I am extremely thankful for each of our needleworkers, and I want them to know that we couldn’t continue this ministry without them,” said Pastor Champion.

The need for the Prayer Shawl Ministry has certainly taken off — as the church now partners with more than 20 organizations, most of them in the Clinton County and surrounding area, to supply lap robes, prayer shawls, afghans, quilts, baby sweater sets and baby blankets, mittens, hats, scarves and comfort dolls to those in need in all age groups.

“A few months ago we took on a project to make hats for a classroom at a Centre County school. The students colored a picture of a hat in their favorite colors and then our needleworkers crocheted or knitted hats to match the students’ picture… and then some of our needleworkers visited the school to present the hats to the children. We’ve been asked to make more hats for different schools since then,” said Pastor Champion.

TAMMY COAKLEY/FOR THE EXPRESS Shalu Mishra, a Prayer Shawl Ministry needleworker, is shown with several lap robes she crocheted.

“We’ve recently contributed large afghans and twin sized bed quilts to the Sleep in Heavenly Peace organization in Lock Haven, and we hope to continue supplying this organization with bedding items that will benefit local children who need their own bed to sleep in,” the pastor said. “One of our needleworkers is willing to sew the twin bed quilts if we can provide the polyfil (used in the middle for warmth) that is needed. The yards of polyfil can also be used when we create red, white and blue lap robes for our veteran’s group that we donate to each year in November.”

When Shalu Mishra lost her husband, Dr. Randhir Mishra, in the spring of 2018, she was overwhelmed with grief. Shalu would just sit and cry most days, not able to look past the sorrow of losing her best friend and husband of 57 years.

“But one day I got a call from Shalu asking questions about our Prayer Shawl Ministry,” remembered Pastor Champion. “And Shalu has been part of our PSM ever since. Although Shalu misses her husband terribly, she now sits and crochets for us … some of the most beautiful afghans that you can imagine have been made by Shalu. Shalu recently donated some wheelchair seat pads for us along with lap robes. I’m so thankful for her contributions each month.”

Donations

The Prayer Shawl Ministry relies on donations (of yarn and money) to keep their vision alive.

TAMMY COAKLEY/FOR THE EXPRESS Comfort dolls are also made by needleworkers of the Prayer Shawl Ministry.

Most months the needleworkers can go through more than $400 worth of yarn to make all the items that we provide for the organizations that have come to depend on our ministry.

“We’ve recently been asked to provide seat pads for wheelchair users in some of the personal care homes in our area. We would need to buy the foam for the pad, so that’s a new expense that we’re hoping the Lord will provide the funds for,” said Pastor Champion.

The Bikers

The Prayer Shawl Ministry is blessed to have Brenda Masden as one of its coordinators and who is a liaison between the PSM and the Susquehanna Valley Cycle Club.

Brenda and her husband, Dana, are bikers who belong to the Susquehanna Valley Big Twins club, a group of about 50 motorcyclists.

The Big Twins Bikers are also going to present lap robes (made in colorfully designed red, white and blue) to several local veterans in November.

On Wednesday, the needleworkers laid out their creations on the pews of the church, more than 1,200 items at last count taken in September, in preparation for delivering the items that will be needed at each of the stops that the bikers will make along the way on Saturday.

The PSM has already given away many items during the course of the year so far to organizations who requested them.

Pastor Champion fields phone calls all the time from groups or places that need a few items to hand out to their clients or someone in need who can use the items.

As she normally will do, Pastor Champion will say a special prayer over all of the colorful items, asking a blessing on those needleworkers who have made the items, a blessing on those bikers who will deliver the many items and praying for the health and happiness all of the recipients who will eventually receive and use the items each day.

The public is invited to come to the church on Saturday morning to see all of the creations made by the Prayer Shawl Ministry needleworkers and meet some of the needleworkers and the Big Twins bikers for a time of fellowship and light refreshments before they set off on their cycles to make their deliveries. If you have family or friends at some of the local nursing homes that you visit, ask them to show you their items and see what their reactions are to receiving the gifts.