Ellen Harpin, founder of "The Ships Project" is the winner of the 2005 Knitter of the year award.

Atlantic City, New Jersey - September 25, 2005 - Ellen Harpin, founder of "The Ships Project" (http://www.theshipsproject.com/) is the winner of the 2005 Knitter of the year award. The award is presented annually at Knitting Magazine's "Stitches" event. This prestigious award is given to the person who has best shown the world how special knitting is in her/his life and how it can transform the lives of others. This year's knitter of the Year award was sponsored by the Lion Brand Yarn company.

Ellen is founder and the driving force behind "The Ships Project". In October of 2001, a female sailor on board the USS Bataan responded to an "Any Sailor" letter written by Ms Harpin. In that letter, Ellen mentioned her love for knitting, prompting the sailor to joke that maybe Ellen could send a pair of knit slippers to keep her feet warm as she slept, since her sleeping quarters were extremely cold. Since then, the project has grown exponentially to include ships and ground troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. All items are hand made, knit, crocheted or sewn. To date, over 166,000 items have been shipped from Ellen's home to the fighting forces overseas. Volunteers number in the hundreds and are from all over the US and even some foreign countries.

"Lion Brand is very pleased to present this prestigious award to Ms Harpin." said David Blumenthal CEO of Lion Brand yarn "I'm so glad we have been given the opportunity to recognize the outstanding work she has done on the Ships Project."

About Lion Brand
Lion Brand Yarn Company, a 127-year-old entity, is America's oldest hand knitting yarn company. Founded in 1878, the company began operation in New York and has been a leading supplier of quality hand knitting and crochet yarns ever since. Throughout its history, Lion Brand Yarn has been at the forefront of yarn trends while consistently providing its customers with the highest quality product, service and inspiration.

Contact:
Ilana Rabinowitz
ilana@lionbrand.com