To celebrate her 90th birthday
A local woman who’s enjoyed knitting since she was in grade school is celebrating her 90th birthday by making handmade gifts for hospitalized children.
Margorie Adelsperger is well on her way to knitting 90 hats for kids who receive care at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital by September, the month when she will turn 90.
Adelsperger began the ambitious knitting project shortly before COVID-19 shelter in place orders were issued in March. The statewide lockdown that followed afforded her some additional time at home to work on the growing array of colorful caps.
“I started at the end of February, when I had to have carpal tunnel surgery, and I’ve just been going ever since,” she said.
“I had some time on my hands and wanted to do something. I kept seeing the St. Jude commercials on television and thought I could at least make some hats for them if I couldn’t do anything else.”
Adelsperger said she’s been knitting since age seven. Her mother and grandmother taught her the skill that’s been passed down to subsequent generations of her family.
“She taught me and my friends to knit when we were young and the first thing I remember making was a pillow for my grandmother,” said Adelsperger’s daughter, Kathy Robinson. “I still like to knit when I feel like it. Usually, if I make a mistake, I quit, which is a lot!”
Adelsperger remembers some of her earliest experiences with needles and yarn being knit booties made for her younger brother, who’s not the only family member for whom she’s knitted clothing or gifts.
“I have four brothers and a sister and either my mother or my grandmother made all of our sweaters, hats and mittens,” noted Robinson. “My grandmother was a weaver and she made material that mom used to make our clothes.”
Knit caps are some of the smaller pieces that Adelsperger enjoys making. She also knits different sizes of blankets and afghans, which tend to be larger and more time-consuming.
“When I lived in St. Augustine, I used to make hats for newborns at a hospital there, Flagler Hospital,” Adelsperger said. “I make afghans for my grandchildren when they get married and baby blankets for all my grandchildren and great-grandchildren.”
Before she moved from Florida to Ellijay almost 10 years ago, Adelsperger and her husband, Dewey, ran a Spanish bakery in St. Augustine’s historic district, Robinson noted.
“We moved from Ohio to Florida in 1967 and lived there till 2011 when I moved up here,” Adelsperger said.
The children’s hats, some of which have taken the shape of such creatures as frogs, ducks and bears, are for all ages of kids, from babies to teens, Adelsperger confirmed.
She has less than 15 hats to go before meeting her goal of having the project finished by September.
“I’m about ready to take number 76 off the needles,” Adelsperger said.
“I’ve used my stockpile of yarn that’s from my favorite yarn shop, which is Strings and Stitches, in Ellijay. They’ve already gone from here to Colorado in the RV when we went a few months ago. I made hats on the way out there and on the way back.”
Founded by entertainer Danny Thomas, the nonprofit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is recognized as one of the world’s foremost pediatric cancer research and treatment facilities. Because of that focus, Adelsperger figures mostly pediatric cancer patients will receive the donated hats.
Robinson said she and her mother are hoping to deliver them to the Memphis, Tenn., hospital in person.
“We’re planning on taking them over to Memphis, but we don’t know if or how they will be able to meet with us. I talked to the person in charge of donations there and they told me to get in touch with them when the time got closer and they will tell us how they will be able to receive them,” Robinson said.