Winter can get pretty cold in Southeastern Saskatchewan. That's why most citizens have something warm and fuzzy to rely on. For those not fortunate enough to have something, Brenda Earl is hoping to have more than enough warmth to share.

The eighth annual Share the Warmth recycling project is underway throughout Saskatchewan, and Earl has been knitting away in her spare time since last winter. She has made more than 30 sweaters for the project and recently stopped in to the Weyburn branch office of SaskEnergy to drop them off.

The project, running until Saturday, Nov. 3, encourages local residents to check closets, drawers and bookshelves for usable warm fuzzies to donate to people in communities across the province. Warm fuzzies can be anything that's clean and usable, such as sweaters, blankets, mittens, gloves, toques or scarves.

Something unique to Weyburn is a wool collection. SaskEnergy asks local residents to bring in balls of wool, whether they are full, leftovers or just odds and ends. The wool is then distributed to enthusiastic knitters such as Earl, who then produce sweaters, gloves and other warm fuzzies for donation. The local SaskEnergy office is in need of more wool for the upcoming winter knitting season to help keep Earl and any other volunteer knitters busy.

"I saw an ad for the project and came down to participate," Earl noted. "I really enjoy knitting and wanted to create things for others, so this was the perfect opportunity. I'll knit when I'm watching television or when I'm not doing something else."

Earl has been the biggest local contributor to the project and was awarded a SaskEnergy t-shirt, mug and pen set when she dropped the finished works off.

"We are amazed with Brenda," said local SaskEnergy organizer Marleen Holtz. "It's not just the quantity of her work, it's the quality of her work as well. Last year some of her items ended up at a Christmas store in Regina, so these sweaters are real top-notch items."

In 2000, the Share the Warmth project collected 73,000 warm fuzzies for less fortunate Saskatchewan residents. This year, coordinators for the project are also encouraging Saskatchewan residents to donate children's books, which will be distributed to children who have no books of their own.

"We may not see a big need for these things in Weyburn," added Holtz. "Our items are sent to the office in Regina and distributed from there. In Saskatoon an employee did a presentation at a drop-in centre there and told the kids to help themselves to a sweater. One young boy came up to her and asked if he could get a blanket instead, because he'd never had one. I'd never heard such a heart-wrenching story before. We might not see it right here, but there is a need throughout Saskatchewan."

To help promote the program, organizers and volunteers with the local Share the Warmth program will be on hand on Saturday, Nov. 3 as the Weyburn Red Wings take on the Kindersley Klippers in a game at the Colosseum. Hockey lovers are asked to bring extra sweaters to the game and help out the cause. All other donations to the project can be dropped off at the Weyburn office of SaskEnergy.