60 knitted sweaters hug trees in downtown Bloomington and yarn shrouds lampposts surrounding the square as the calendar turns to October, issuing the start of “Wrapped in Love.”
Middle Way House began their annual six-month “Wrapped in Love” public art display with a yarn cutting ceremony Oct. 1 at the Bloomington courthouse.
The event coincides with the start of Domestic Violence Awareness month. The tree sweaters will be on display through March 1, 2022, according to the “Wrapped in Love” pamphlet.
Middle Way House celebrates its 50th year of providing support to survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking this year. Middle Way House is the 2021 recipient of the Purple Ribbon Award for Outstanding Fundraising Event for “Wrapped in Love.”
The wrapped trees are located downtown on Kirkwood Avenue and Sixth Street, with a few featured on Indiana Avenue. Each tree sweater includes a fabric artist tag, sponsorship label and Middle Way House’s 24/7 crisis line phone number. Locations of all tree sweaters can be found with the virtual tree map.
Kathleen Sideli, Middle Way House President and board member, announced the Middle Way House’s shelter will be renamed The Cindy Houston Shelter in honor of the former long-term board member’s 34 years of service. Houston had the honor of cutting the event’s ceremonial red yarn.
“Being involved with Middle Way House has been and continues to be magical,” Houston said. “I want everyone involved. I want everybody to figure out what they can do to create a culture of non-violence because that is what it will take so we can close the shelter.”
“Wrapped in Love” is Middle Way House’s largest fundraising and outreach event. The public display features 57 returning and three new tree sweaters, which is the largest number of sweaters in its history. Middle Way House also fundraised their largest ever amount at $34,000, Madeline Plant, director of development of Middle Way House, said.
“We are not just wrapping a tree sweater for the aesthetic, but each tree sweater makes a difference,” Plant said. “Each tree sweater is backed by an organization or an individual who has pledged to end the cycle of violence within Bloomington, and they have donated to do so.”
Bloomington High School North’s Project Middle Way sponsored one of this year’s trees, the organization hosts events for high schoolers throughout the year to raise awareness for Middle Way House and domestic violence. The group raised $5,000 for Middle Way House through an annual fashion show, Roudra Chatterjea, BHSNl senior and Project Middle Way president, said.
Due to the increased number of volunteers, Christopher De Young, Middle Way House board development chair, said the art display was installed in a week and a half. Each installation time varies depending on the intricacy of the sweater and the surface of the trees.
“For me, what I think is really incredible is the way people react to the sweaters,” De Young said.
Last weekend, a couple got married at the courthouse and took their wedding photos next to the “Let Love Bloom” tree sweater. The same weekend, a 6 year-old-girl who lost her tooth posed for a picture with a sweater featuring teeth, sponsored by the office of Dr. Mark Sils and Dr. Grant Hardisty at Family Dental Centre, De Young said.
During the “Yarn Bombing” event Sept. 25, the lampposts around the square were wrapped in four different yarn colors. The red yarn represents love, purple represents domestic violence awareness, yellow represents hope and teal represents sexual violence awareness, according to the pamphlet.
Plant and Houston said Middle Way House aims to educate the community and encourage people to take a stand against the cycle of violence, in hope the shelter can close its doors permanently one day.
