Ted Schuman, 87, sits down in his favourite chair in a Spruce Grove seniors home and turns on a black and white movie.
In his hands, not a remote control, but a needle and yarn.
“I always felt I wanted to do something that’s useful and not just sit around.”
It’s not a typical hobby for most men, but Schuman is working through the anguish of losing a woman who was by his side for 66 years.
His wife Mary passed away last fall after battling liver cancer.
“I still can’t get over the loss of my wife. It’s a long time to be with someone, and then not be."
Schuman wipes away tears as he recalls how the couple spent their last few years together.
“We made toques for the homeless and people on the street, and then of course spring came and well, they don’t need them now."
So that’s when Mary and Ted started loom knitting tiny caps for newborn babies.
“I hear there’s quite a need for them, they have cold heads! The little guys really like them I guess, that’s what I hear anyway.”
Now with his beloved Mary gone, the Barrhead native and great-grandfather of eight, has even more reason to keep busy his hands and mind.
“For me, it’s very peaceful and keeps me doing something, and I don’t get all wimpy haha.”
So much so, Schuman’s cap knitting total is now over a thousand.
And the thank you notes keep coming from the Grey Nuns and Misericordia Hospitals.
“Once I found out they really liked them, I just kept at it. Now I finish them by myself… but that’s okay.“
