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Now or Never

'Take this scarf... If you're cold... Or if you like it'

That's the tag on free scarves, knitted by Good Samaritans, that are left in public parks all across Canada through an initiative called Chase the Chill.
CBC News ·
Tammy Riou and Val Paulley show off some of the 700 scarves they and other volunteers hung all around Old Market Square in Winnipeg. (Kaj Hasselriis, CBC)

'Tis the season to share ... new, hand-knit scarves!

That's what Tammy Riou, Val Paulley and a bunch of other volunteers did earlier this month in Winnipeg's Old Market Square.

They unloaded vans full of scarves — 700 in all — which were hand-made throughout the year by knitters across the city.

Then they hung them all from trees and lampposts in the park.

Each free scarf comes with a tag. (Kaj Hasselriis, CBC)

"They're intended for people who are living on the streets," said Riou, "or people who just can't afford to go out and buy something new."

Each scarf comes with a tag that says: "Take this scarf... if you're cold... or if you like it."

It's part of a growing movement called Chase the Chill: volunteer knitters who create and distribute free scarves in cities around North America every winter.

Free scarves hang from every tree and pole in Winnipeg's Old Market Square. (Kaj Hasselriis, CBC)

"The scarves are put out here without any qualifiers," said Paulley, who helped start a Chase the Chill chapter in Winnipeg in 2011. "We want to provide for the privacy and dignity of anyone who has a need to be able to choose their scarf."

Riou got involved as a volunteer on the morning of the scarf handout when she saw an invitation for it on Facebook.

"There are so many people who don't have what we have and it's a good way to just help out," said Riou. "I would hope that if I was ever in that situation that somebody would help me."

"We can't solve the homelessness problem," said Paulley, "but maybe we can make them a little warmer today."

To find out if there's a Chase the Chill chapter in your city, go to Facebook and search the words 'Chase the Chill', followed by the name of your city.

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