COLUMBUS, Ohio — A Central Ohio family keeping giving at the center of everything they do is helping a lot of Ohioans stay warm year after year.
What You Need To Know
- Susan Jones started Hats for the Homeless & School Children in 2019
- The former teacher and coach suffered a brain injury after getting hit by a softball
- Today, her family knits hats and has distributed over 5,000
As Susan Jones contemplated what she’d do moving forward after her injury, she knew she wanted to give. That and the less fortunate is something she’s always had a heart for, for years. It wasn’t until a neighbor brought over a loom that things shifted.
Knowing nothing about knitting, Jones said she picked up the loom and taught herself how to knit. She said she’s always been one to learn things on her own. Learning that skill set things in motion for giving the hats to shelters for the housing insecure, K-12 kids, and even nursing homes.
From there, things blossomed. Teaching her mother soon paid off, as Jones would no longer be able to knit. The injury, along with having vertigo, made it impossible.
Still, in a challenging time of the family’s life, knitting and giving away the hats became therapy to help them get through it all. Giving them a chance to bond in a greater way, the family is so grateful for the chance to be able to share what they’re doing with others.
“It’s just been a blessing. It blesses us. It’s a good feeling,” Susan Jones said.
While Susan makes sure they’ve always got plenty of yarn by purchasing it, her sister makes sure the hats get distributed not only through her organization but others.
Sara Jones, spends an hour making each hat.
“On a regular day now, I usually make about three,” she said. Last year, she made 1,000.
“Our hope is that people that get the hat… they will know that they’re loved, not only by the hands that make ‘em, but by God,” she said.
