Charity Feature- Scarves for Special Olympics

I started crocheting the summer before my sophomore year in college and quickly became, well, hooked. I was lucky enough that my college had a knitting group and I went dutifully every week for the conversation, the relaxation, and a dedicated time to work on my projects. While there, I heard some of the members talk about various charity groups for which they occasionally made projects. Of course, the most popular was Warm Up America! and I certainly donated quite a few rectangles (of which I'll discuss in a later post).
However, this summer I got bored with my usual charity projects, as horrible as that sounds. They felt stagnant and the initial motivation I had for them waned significantly. So, I went to http://www.dailycrocheter.com/ and looked around for some new charity ideas.
As many people know, I work with adults with MR/DD (mental retardation and developmental delays) to teach them job skills to find employment within the community at large. It's a job I absolutely love and my hope is to become an Occupational Therapist with a specialty in the MR/DD population. So, when I found Scarves for Special Olympics at Daily Crocheter, I knew instantly what my new charity project would be.
The Special Olympics is collecting donations of handmade, knitted or crocheted scarves to give out to all participants, coaches, and volunteers during each participating state's Winter Games. Scarves need to be 6" wide and between 54"-60" long, including fringe. They also must be made from Red Heart Supersaver yarn in Cherry Red or Soft Navy, or in Red Heart Soft Navy or Really Red. They may be in any pattern, but must fit the above mentioned guidelines. When completed, pick a state from those that are participating to get the mailing information. The majority of states are participating, so pretty much everyone should be able to send them to their home state (or adopted state). If you need any more information, the guidelines website is:http://www.scarvesforspecialolympics.org/states
I have made and sent about 9 scarves to Special Olympics WV, as pictured below. My goal is to donate at least ten, dependent upon how many other items people ask me to make for them.

This is a project that is near and dear to my heart, and I would love to see more people participating!
Please check out Scarves for Special Olympics on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Scarves-For-Special-Olympics/311814935551?ref=ts

If you are interested in making donatable projects, I highly suggest visiting http://www.dailycrocheter.com/charity.php and http://cache.lionbrand.com/cgi-bin/pg.fcgi?page=charityConnectionTemplate.html for some fantastic suggestions.