Thank You All For Participating In The Sock Drive

I would like to thank every single person that put their work and effort into the sock drive. There turned out to be more work, and the generosity and compassion of everyone involved is very much appreciated. Even though this post is a little bit late, it is important to show gratitude to people that show their willingness to help others in great need.

Sock Drive Conclusion

This season has brought more than we expected! There were a lot of socks and other items brought in than what I imagined. I don't know yet what the total amount of donated items is, but I will be sure to post this information when I do. What an exciting year this was!

(Note: This was written with the help of my volunteer, Steven.)

New Volunteer + Some Updates

Hello, this is Barbara Vance or the "Sock Granny." I'd like to introduce to you a new volunteer at Little Mountain Place, Steven Huang, who will be helping me with my computer work. He has been assigned to visit me every Saturday for at least 45 minutes. I cannot work on my projects due to my current health condition, so Steven will be assisting me in my work.

I will lead a sock and toque drive from December 1 to December 23. Thank you to everyone that have supported me and I hope to collect even more pairs of socks for the homeless.

I am at the nursing home called Little Mountain Place. If you like to contact me, please write to me (Barbara Vance) at 330 East 36th Avenue.

Feb 5/16 new total

Breaking news!
As of Feb 5/16 we have a new total - 1920 pairs of socks thanks to the Crew and Friends of AirTransat sock drive organized by Carie-Ann Peterson.

Thank You!

Jan. 22/16-- 1702 pairs of socks donated

We reached an awesome total of 1702 pairs of socks today!

Thank you everyone.

Brian Coxford Interviews Sock Granny

On Jan. 8, 2016 Retirement Concepts (owner of Terraces on 7th) arranged a big event called "Star Search" for their new web page.
The Sock Granny was invited to be one of the featured guests.

Much to my surprise it was Brian Coxford waiting to interview me. Brian Coxford is one of the Award winning reporters from Global TV. I have been watching this super star reporter for 40 years! The challenge for me was how to overcome this wave of "starstruckness" to do the interview. Brian's relaxing skill made it easy and I enjoyed every second of the interview. As soon as the interview becomes available online I will post the link here.
In the meantime The Sock Granny is very grateful for the opportunity Brian has created to make us all aware of giving socks to those who need them most - THE HOMELESS!

Thank you for your support Pat and Brian!

#sockgranny

The Sock Granny Radio Interview

Molly and I were interviewed November 30. 2015 by Kirk LaPointe on Roundhouse Radio 98.3 the Program is called OUR CITY - you can listen to Molly and ‪#‎sockgranny‬ as it has been uploaded to http://cirh.streamon.fm/listen-pl-336

Photograph of the two Molly's taking the SocK Granny Nov 29/30 sock collection from Starbucks and my Granddaughters hygiene products for the homeless women.

Left to Right:
Molly - Out Reach Worker
She was excited to see ao many socks!
She hands them out to street people when
she visits them sleeping on the sidewalks.

Molly - Recreational Therapist at the resource center.
When people in need come to the centre she makes sure they get clean socks
She said they often ask for "Sock Granny Socks".

Donate Socks at these locations
CLICK HERE

#sockgranny #givesocks

Sock Announcement re 2015 Sock Drive

Molly from MPA-Society.org sent me this note
Molly wrote Nov 25/15
"I counted all the socks from today and the total was 524.
Your grand total to date is 947!!!!
Congrats! And Thank you again.
Molly"
www.mpa-society.org
Vancouver, BC, Canada


Donations can be left at these locations:

Click for Location list

#sockgranny thanks you!

102 Pairs of Socks Creates a Happy Buzz

Nov. 23/15 Wendy arrived with 102 pairs of socks for our Sock Drive collection. Thank you Wendy for being such an excellent shopper on our behalf for the homeless.
Let me explain a bit of background to this story.

It all began with a visit from Molly of MPA-society.org

As the Sock Granny,I am the person with the original vision that Senior's and their families working together can still do a lot of good. Some of my most passionate supporters are in their 90s and one lady is 100 and loves to give fuzzy socks. Everyone living in my Senior's Residence have many serious health problems, including me, but we all have some socks in our dresser draws that we don't wear anymore. Socks began to show up at my apartment door by the bag full.
Our Rec. Director, Jennifer, and I decided to have a Sock Appreciation Hot Chocolate Party and people brought more socks. Some wanted to give cash because they were unable to go shopping anymore. The problem is, I can't go shopping either. Wendy heard of my problem and volunteered to do sock shopping for me! She looks for socks of good quality but on sale so me can make the best use of the donated money and our friends, the homeless and mentality ill, recieve the very best we can give.

Socks at Terraces on 7th cause a real positive buzz among the residents and you often see people at the sock donation basket talking and feeling the socks.(I call it petting the socks with love for those in need.) It is wonderful that the socks are making seniors feel happier too.

Drop-off locations in Vancouver, BC
Sock Donations

#sockgranny thanks you!

How to Start a Sock Drive for the Homeless – Be Kind

Starting a sock drive is an act of kindness that will ripple out and touch many people.

Our guest speaker was the recreational therapist from the mental health and homeless facility that is just across the street from where we live. One of many topics that she spoke about was their great need for socks during the winter months. Everyone who comes in will get a pair of clean used or new socks. Why socks? Homeless people walk everywhere all day long and often in wet socks from the rainy/snowy winter giving rise to rampant athlete's foot and painful infections that thrive when your feet are constantly wet. The homeless will not take their shoes and socks off even if they have a place to sleep in a shelter because they fear their shoes and socks will be stolen during the night. So everyone is given clean, dry socks everyday.
She then told us how easy it was to start a sock drive by telling us about the highschool students at her daughters school started a Sock Drive for the Homeless with one poster and talking to friends – they donated 200 pairs of socks.

2013 I volunteered to collect socks. My original goal was 100 pairs of socks. We reached that in less than 2 weeks and our total climbed to over 400 pairs of socks by the end of January 2014.

The Sock Granny was born! Read the MPA-society.org published news release:
MPA Society’s call for donations for new socks received an overwhelmingly positive response, thanks to the “Sock Granny.”
http://www.mpa-society.org/publications-resources/mpa-in-the-news/news-releases/2013/12/11/call-for-donations-for-new-socks

2015 is our 3rd annual Sock Drive and it is growing far beyond my wildest dreams. My Granddaugher has a passion to help homeless women and she is collecting for their special hygienic needs. Her shopping skills with cash donations has been labelled as briliant by the MPA representive, Molly McDonald.

A sample of Serene's items for the homeless women:

List of donation locations in Vancouver, BC, Canada
To Donate Click Here

We want your Mismatched Socks

Socks don't have to match to warm cold wet feet.

https://youtu.be/epk_rU2oNRk

Donate Socks Here
http://sock-granny.blogspot.ca/2015/11/donate-socks-at-these-locations.html

Following a River of Socks

The spirit of the River of Socks is fed by people who are full of goodness, kindness and most important the power of love.
All this power comes from the most unlikely sources

November, Friday the 13th, 2015 is World Kindness Day. When we entered our dining room we all recieved a rose in a gift bag that looked like a product promotion. In the bag was healthy snacks and one pair of socks.
Kind Snacks and Bombas joined together to give kindness gifts to the elderly on World Kindness Day. (This was not a scam or joke.)
We were the the recipients of true kindness and I was humbled and touched.
I put my pair of socks in our Sock Donation Basket and saw that someone had already donated theirs. By the next day the basket was half full of Bombas socks.
I am so proud to have so many "elderly heroes" as my friends that have hearts overflowing with love and kindness for the poor - the homeless.

Thank you!

Complete List of Drop-off Locations

Giving is a World Without Borders

From China with LOVE!

300 pairs of new socks drectly from China to the Sock Granny sock drive for the homeless and mentally ill at MPA-Society.org resource centre
Read how the Sock Granny began collecting socks MPA Society's call for donations

This generous donation is from my friends friend who has family in the sock business in China. Thank you very much!

Love Your Global Neighbors

Molly keeps a running total of the pairs of socks she gets from me and Nov. 6 after her pick-up she emailed me, " Your total stands at 423 pairs as of today ! Congratulations!"

Thank you everyone !!

Donate Socks at these Locations

Drop-off locations in Vancouver, BC, Canada

Terraces on 7th (1570 West 7th Avenue) leave at front desk for Sock Granny

8th and Main Clothing Stores at 8th and Main and Downtown at 1105 Granville Street

Starbucks Stores:

Donation for Mens and Womens Socks

Granville and 11th Avenue

Kits Beach - Corwall and Yew

Granville Chapters - Broadway

4th Ave. and Vine

False Creek - 6th Ave and Willow

Broadway and Pine

Cornwall and Cypress

16th Ave and MacDonald

Donations for socks and womens hygienic products for the homeless

Granville Island - 3rd Ave and Burrard

Portico - 7th Ave and Granville

Thank you #Starbucks and 8th and Main Clothing stores!

Gift Socks from Japan

One of the greatest gifts you can give a homeless person is a pair of socks.

You may have seen a homeless man standing with a poster that says, "Socks are the most needed but least donated."

A visiting couple from Japan brought the Sock Granny socks for the homeless sock drive.
Can you imagine how happy and surprised they will be they see the socks are a special gift from Japan and that people care for each other worldwide. Very much apprecated.
Here are the cool labels. Thank you for making a positive difference in someones life.

Like the Sock Granny on Facebook

Visitors from Japan

Today I learned that visitors from Japan are in Vancouver and they brought socks all the way from Japan to give them to the Sock Granny.
I am so excited that I will meet them next week.
I will share the picture of the socks and more of their story at that time.

To all the Global Visitors -- Thank You!

The need for socks is without borders!

Over 100 million are homeless wordwide. Part of the Sock Granny Sock Drive mission is to help people in every country become sock aware and you can make a difference with one pair of socks. #givesocks
http://sock-granny.blogspot.ca/

The Sock Granny Blog has had visitors between Aug 16, 2015 – Nov 4, 2015 from these countries:
United States, Canada, Slovakia,
Italy, Switzerland, France, Netherlands,
Russia, Sweden, Singapore, Chile
Serbia, Ukraine, Georgia, United Kingdom
Germany, Brazil, Ireland, Argentina,
Japan, Belgium

We thank you for visiting.

#givesocks

Happiness in the Sock Donation Basket

My Sock Donation Basket looked empty as I approached it but then I noticed a note inside the basket.


It was a "Happiness Note" with a promise that will make 300 people a little happier!

Happiness exists because of the constant practice of generosity.
Thank You!

Donation Excitedly Approved

When Molly (representative from MPA-society.org) came to my place to pickup the latest donations she was excited to see the new donations for the homeless women. The photograph records the moment and the words for Serene's spending of the money donated towards buying for the women.
The list includes Women's hygiene items and Women's comfort items. When Serene saw the flashlights that don't need batteries she immediately thought of how they would contribute towards the safety of the women.

Thank you!