Suzanne Lazaroo
20 September 2018: Tuesdays are Teddy days for a dedicated bunch of University of Canberra students, alumni and staff.
That’s when they spend their collective lunchtimes knitting Trauma Teddies for the Red Cross, to give to children experiencing some form of trauma.
The group was started in 2016 by Bachelor of Education student Rebekah Heritage, who has been crafting the bears for the Red Cross for seven years now.
“I like knitting, and I like children,” Ms Heritage said. “So I really like the idea of knitting something that will cut across age and culture groups, and result in giving a teddy to a child who needs one.”
With their soft, colourful bodies and gentle smiles, Trauma Teddies are designed to provide comfort.
A national initiative, the Red Cross Trauma Teddy project was created in 1990.
Richard Hamilton, the superintendent of NSW’s Campbelltown ambulance service when the project began, was impressed by how effectively a teddy bear was able to calm a child being treated by emergency services.
He asked the Red Cross to provide bears for other children treated by emergency services, and the project was born.
The University knitting project attracts a wide range of people.
“Some of them are expert knitters, others are newbies, and then I teach them how to knit,” Ms Heritage said. “We are a pretty diverse bunch, and some have even graduated, but still come back to join us.”
The materials are all donated, some from the University, some from Ms Heritage and the other knitters.
“The teddies are all knitted from a pattern provided by the Red Cross, but the colours are completely up to the knitter,” Ms Heritage said. “The Red Cross also tests each bear, to make sure there is no stuffing coming out etc.”
In the first month of this semester, the group had already completed 15 bears.
By 2017, the group were making 50 bears a semester for the Red Cross. “Last semester, we made it to 60,” Ms Heritage said.
For more information on this fulfilling project, check out the UC Events page here.
