Bears For Kids

A continuous service project benefiting children in Atlanta’s underserved communities

Bears made to date:

1,864

We use a simple, three part pattern, fleece fabrics, and polyfil stuffing to create our bear cubs. We share our bears with children in our community as a sign of compassion and empathy for those faced with uncertainty in our world. Our bears provide comfort and companionship to children and adults alike.

I would love to help, but what could I do??

click on each activity for a brief description

As a general rule, fleece fabric is used for the bear's face. In some cases, we use a softer cotton. Faces can be applied in a variety of fashions, with the preferred method being heat-pressed infused ink. Embroidery is also an option. Success has also been attained using fabric paints and a stencil. Creativity is encouraged, but design should be kid-safe. Faces are provided to the Sewers for the assembly process.
To each bear, we apply a crocheted heart. A number of the members enjoy making 1" and 2" hearts at home. Once the hearts are made, they can be applied at any phase of the process, whether done by the Cutter, the Sewer, or the Finisher. Simple hand stitching is required to apply the heart. Hearts are provided to Sewers and Finishers as needed.
The tracing and cutting task is straightforward, and can easily be done at home. We provide the tracing pattern. You can use your own fleece fabrics, or we can provide if needed. The Cutter uses their own equipment at home to cut out the bear parts. The cutter then coordinates with a Sewer to get the parts to them for the assembly process.

For ambitious cutters, a simple hand or machine stitch can be used to apply a pre-made heart to the cut bear front.
WE NEED SEWERS!!! The Assember/Sewer is the heart of the operation. The Sewer manages the assembly process for each bear, which includes selecting a pre-made face, sewing the ears, and then sewing the entire bear with the exception of the stuff point at the back of the neck. The sewn bears are now ready to go to the Stuffer.
Some sewers may choose to add a heart at this stage before sending to the Stuffer.
The job of stuffer is often done in our group setting. The Stuffer is responsible for flipping the bears right-side-out, smoothing out the edges, and filling each bear with a mixture of poly-fil stuffing and scrap fleece. During this stage, each bear is checked for seam tears and other imperfections, and then passed on to the Finisher for the final stage of the process.
The finisher ensures that each bear is properly stuffed, and completes a final quality check. The Finisher then closes the back of each neck using a hidden stitch. Finally, if the bear has not yet had a heart applied, the Finisher will complete this step.
Completed bears are provided to our partner team, who in turn distributes them to our neighborhood children.

machine sewing skills are only required for the Assembler/Sewer activity

Ways You Can Participate

Start-to-Finish
Independent Crafters

For individuals who are comfortable making a bear from start to finish, you are welcome to work independently and provide your bears to us upon completion. You can use our simple pattern and instructions to make your creations.

If you are local to Atlanta, we can provide fleece, pre-made faces, and hearts, if needed. However, if you can provide your own materials, your donation is greatly appreciated! We will coordinate exchanges of materials and finished products on a member-by-member basis.

Choose your role(s) & work independently

Many of our roles/skills are activities that can be done at home or with a group of friends:
Heart Makers
Face Makers
Tracers/Cutters
Assembler/Sewers

As with Independent Crafters, we will facilitate the coordination of materials and finished products between participants whenever possible.

Assembler/Sewers will need a sewing machine and rudimentary machine sewing skills.

Group Fluffing, Stuffing & Finishing Events

We meet as a Community Bear Den once per month, at different locations around Atlanta and Decatur.

At these events, we take all of the bears that have been sewn during the previous month and stuff them. As one team stuffs and checks the bears, another team begins the finishing work, doing a final check for flaws and carefully closing each neck; if one is not yet attached, a heart will be added as the final step.

Notification for upcoming events is via email distribution and Google Group postings only - we won’t publicly post dates or locations. Due to space limitations and safety concerns, RSVPs will be requested for each event.