Linda Cortright – Yarn Blog | Adventures with Yarn

I have just spoken with my Clay Goforth at Jade Tree, the company that creates the yak yarn from Yushu where the earthquake hit. This is what he had to say:

The latest news is that 90% of the homes in Yushu have been destroyed. The casualties have risen to 400 confirmed and an estimated 200-400 more are presumed. The Chinese Government sent 3,000 troops in to help dig people out whom are still trapped. The airport is shut down so the only way in or out is through one road coming from Xining and it is a 14-16 hour drive to get any kind of medical teams in or evac people out.
I don’t know your realm of influence, but if you could reach out to people you know for support and donations, as money will be a huge commodity that would be great.

They can send donations to:
Yushu Earthquake Relief
c/o First Asia Development
PO Box 8668
Fayetteville AR 72703

This is the non-profit organization through which the Jade Tree Project does its fundraising for community development work in Tibet. I am president of the non-profit, so if anyone has any questions, send them my way and I will be happy to answer anything.

Thanks Linda,

Here is the link he just sent me to donate as well: http://jadetreeproject.blogspot.com/

This was written by Linda Cortright

Often times I feel like a lone voice in the fiber community. I don’t have time to talk about sock patterns or colorways, much less indulge in an entire weekend of lace knitting. My job as editor of Wild Fibers is to try and get the millions and millions of knitters around the world to care about where their fibers come from. I try to get them to care about the animals, I try to get them to care about the people, and I try to get them to care about how their choices – their precious yarn stashes – impact the lives of complete strangers around the world. In fact, I truly believe that to not care about these things just reinforces a sadly held view of American culture. That many Americans are deeply committed to their own comfort and choose to either ignore, or acknowledge the world that revolves beyond their backyard.

And so with that in mind I will tell you that I have just gotten off of Skype with a man in Yushu Province, China. A severe earthquake struck his “backyard” several hours ago and has initially been categorized as a magnitude of 6.9-7.1. We chatted very briefly as he had to leave to take water and supplies to the WEAVERS and SPINNERS who create his yak yarn.

I don’t imagine anyone will be blogging very much about how this natural disaster effects the fiber community, but that’s exactly why I’m writing this here. I am holding a plane ticket for Yushu scheduled to leave in six weeks, it just so happens this is the cover story in an upcoming issue. My reason for choosing this story is because of the huge Muslim underground that is literally controlling the price point of wool in the Tibetan plateau. And now I have just learned that the buildings, to say nothing of the people themselves, may be standing (if they’re lucky) amidst a pile of rubble.

I know the fiber community is full of people with incredibly large hearts. I witnessed that first hand last year with the efforts they gave towards Keep the Fleece. But I can’t help but think that if even one tenth of the people on Ravelry (and that is thousands and thousands) had an interest in learning about the origin of their fibers, we could help make the fiber community not only a place with a big heart, but one with an informed mind as well.

Please check back for updates on Yushu.